Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Perfecting Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola

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I consider myself to be a pretty good cook. I’m not bragging. I’m simply stating that I really enjoy cooking, I can throw together meals and snacks quite efficiently, and when people eat my food, they often say, “Yum, this is good.”

But for the life of me, I can’t make a No-Bake Cookie. It’s the recipe most ten year olds can make and the cookie even those who hate cooking can create without issue. But me? I can’t get a No-Bake Cookie to turn out no matter what I try. I’ve turned that job over to our 16 year old because he has the method down pat and makes perfect No-Bake Cookies nine times out of ten (even though I think he’s really only made them six times in his life but who’s counting?).

So would you believe that last week, while I was making a batch of Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola – I turned out a perfect batch of No-Bake Cookies?! Yes. I cannot make them when I try, but when I’m trying to make something different, I actually master the blasted cookie. So let’s review:

1. I stink at making No-Bake Cookies. I have attempted making them at least 14 times in my life and have had success…never.

2. Asa is great at making No-Bake Cookies. The job is his.

3. A few weeks ago, Asa was making No-Bake Cookies but they got crumbly so we turned the mixture into Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola. That was his one time out of ten (or six or whatever) that he didn’t get them perfect. 

4. The granola was delicious, I reduced the sugar and posted the recipe because everyone needed to have access to it.

5. I then tried making the granola again, and turned out the best No-Bake Cookies ever.

Unbelievable. You’ve got to love the lame irony. But hey, we’re talking about peanut butter, chocolate, oats, butter, and vanilla – all favorite ingredients of mine. I’m not whining too loudly.

So just in case you want to make Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola, but end up with No-Bake Cookies, I will share with you how I solved my “problem.” I added a few extra oats to soak up the liquid (which did not help the mixture turn into granola – just really oaty cookies). Then I spread the mixture on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and baked it at 250° for one hour, stirring occasionally. The granola got nice and crispy (and made my house smell amazing).

I will now go edit the Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola recipe page to share these suggestions in case you too accidentally find yourself with No-Bake Cookies. If only all mistakes in the kitchen were this delicious. :)

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Yum

How are you at making No Bake Cookies?  I think I might be the only person on the planet who can’t make them. ;)

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How Much Media Time Do You Allow Your Kids?

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Media time. It was a topic that came up while several of us were visiting at the Colorado Springs Meet & Greet. I loved the discussion as it helped me figure out what would work well for our kids this summer!

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My boys are just like many kids: if given the freedom, they would get on the computer to play games – and never get off…ever. (I’ve never been able to figure out how they don’t at least need to get up and pee??! That’s an amazing distraction, the computer.)

We have to set guidelines for our kids – with the main goal of helping our kids set restrictions for themselves when it comes to media time. After all, it’s one thing for Mom to holler “time’s up!” when someone is on the computer at home, but once they get off on their own, what will they do when Mom isn’t there to help manage their time? Oh, so much training we must do as a parent… :)

Media Time for the Kids

Our kids get plenty of “screen time” during the school year as they do their math, spanish, and a variety of writing or typing projects on the computer each day. In addition, our boys love to create music and movies (Cake Boys, anyone?), so they use computers often as they write scripts, edit footage, and come up with songs on the special software we got them for this purpose. We love how the computer gives us so many options and so many educational opportunities! But after all of that, what about Netflix, computer games, and all the other fun to be had on the computer?

This is subject to change, but for now, each of our boys is given 45 minutes each day for “computer time” to be used however they like. Obviously, we are very aware of what they are playing or watching on the computer at all times and the computers are out in the open so that we can keep the boys safe.

As for this summer, we’ve told the boys, “No screen time (not even for creating music or movies) until 3:00 in the afternoon.” That way, they get up and start getting creative, play something active, jump on the trampoline, read, do chores, get together with friends – all sorts of activities! without getting sucked into the computer or TV screen at the beginning of the day. Often, 3:00 rolls around and they are too busy to notice.

Once their time is up, it is up, and it’s back to other activities. So far, this plan is working well for us.

I know each family has different ideas to make this work, and I’d love to hear them. I think it is so helpful to get ideas from all of you for what works for your kids and family’s situation.  What guidelines have you set for your kids when it comes to media? Do you have limits on computer/TV time? What works for you!?

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Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve: Early Learners Curriculum Kit – New, Improved, and On Sale!

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I am so thankful to see how Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve has come together. Working through this curriculum blessed our family so much when our boys were little, and I’ve heard from so many of you over the past 2 1/2 years that the curriculum has blessed your family too.

It is with great excitement that I now present this curriculum to you in a “new set of clothes.” The content is the same. The idea of teaching your kids to serve right along with teaching them academic basics is the same. But the look is new. The format is much improved. Overall, it looks much more professional.

Have you purchased Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve in the past? Email me if you’d like a download link for the updated version. If you don’t yet have this curriculum, but have kids ages 2-7, I would love for you to look into this kit. With 26 complete lessons including recipes, crafts, Bible stories and memory work, writing practice, and so much more – along with loads of ideas of how to teach your kids to think of and serve others – this curriculum is a well rounded program for your whole family to enjoy together.

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Some of our family’s favorite memories include:  On “Jj week”, taking a Jar of Jelly beans to our “bigger” friend John (a great role model to our boys when they were little); Receiving a “Mmmm!” thank you note for the “marvelous, magnificent mini muffins” from Mr. and Mrs. Miller after our visit with them on “Mm week”; Surprising Daddy with Donuts on “Dd week”; Picking out a tiny toy for Tina on “Tt week” – not to mention how much fun we had brainstorming together for people to serve and what we might surprise them with that week! Our list goes on…the kids still talk about all we did with these ideas when they were little. 

You can read more about this curriculum kit here. The entire kit is 183 pages, loaded with ideas and information – plenty to keep you busy, yet flexible enough to work in any family situation. To get a feel for what this kit is like, help yourself to free Curriculum Sample Pages, including the lesson for LetterBb.

For one week, we are offering a “re-launch special” – knocking $10 off the price. We offer this curriculum in download form and printed form too – whichever works better for your family!

Downloadable Version
$45.00
$35.00

Add to Cart

Printed Version
$68.00
$58.00
(price includes entire 183 page color printed kit and shipping costs)
U.S. only. Contact me if you’re interested in having a book shipped outside the U.S.!

Add to Cart

Sale prices end Wednesday, June 12. Take advantage of these prices while you can!

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Gratituesday: Godly Men in the Making

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It’s what we have been praying for, working toward, and spending so much of our time on for the past (almost) 16 years. 

It was after God gave us “Boy Number Three” that we were suddenly struck with the realization that His intention wasn’t just for us to raise boys that were nice, clean, and well-behaved. It wasn’t just about surviving each day with a bunch of little ones – feeding them, stopping them from breaking a lamp as they jumped off the furniture, and keeping crust from forming under their noses.

“Boy Number Three”, which had followed “Boy Number One” and “Boy Number Two” (and who would be followed in a few years by “Boy Number Four”), seemed to come with a loud and clear announcement from God. Indeed, it was as though this child had a gift tag attached to his toe which read, “I have given you all these boys so that you can raise godly leaders for my church.”

At that point in our lives, I would have to say that my focus as a parent changed. God gives us all this purpose as we raise our children. I am so thankful He made this so clear to me that winter afternoon in 2002 while I was marveling at our newest baby boy.

Our four boys are far from perfect – a direct result of imperfect parenting. Without a doubt, the good I see in my children comes directly from the Lord, who loves them more than I – a fact that amazes me, seeing as I love them so much I can’t even breathe. I love seeing who our boys are becoming both because of our parenting choices and in spite of our parenting choices. (Thank you, God, for grace!)

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Here is Asa (all 6’2″ of him) among several in our church family who went on a mission trip last week.
They are posing in front of the house they painted. A job well done!

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Here is Justus painting a house during the mission trip last week.
It is great that our boys got such good practice since our house is in the middle of being painted too… :)

I am so thankful for the time God has given Matt and me to be with and to guide our boys. I’m thankful for our church family, for those who mentor our boys, and for their peers who offer meaningful friendship. My heart overflows tonight with who my boys are becoming. It is a joy to be a part of this journey.

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday, please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

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How Many Times a Day Do You Run Your Dishwasher?

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I know some of you don’t own a dishwasher (the electric kind with buttons that does the work for you). We didn’t own one for the first ten years of our marriage, and since I didn’t know the difference, I didn’t mind at all. Today, if our dishwasher were to break, I would go right ahead and do all of our dishes by hand and be just fine.

But I have to say, I am very thankful that I have a working dishwasher. I use that thing like crazy, and find that it saves me a lot of time. We do have to rinse our dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, but I’d have to do that before washing them too, so the dishwasher definitely saves me a step.

With the kids gone last week, I found that I only needed to run the dishwasher once every other day. Wow! That felt so strange to me. Why? Because I run it a minimum of twice a day on a regular basis, and if we have company or I’m doing extra cooking for the freezer, I sometimes need to run it a third time. And trust me, the dishwasher is crammed full each time I run it.

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Here it is this morning, ready for our boys to unload (and reload after breakfast!).

Plates, mixing bowls, stainless steel pots and pans, utensils, jars, casserole dishes, glasses – we go through a lot of dishes each day. It made me curious…how often do you run your dishwasher? 

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Menu Plan for the Week

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It was quite a week at our house! With our two oldest boys on a mission trip with the church youth group, and our two youngest boys with grandparents – Matt and I were home alone for four days. It was quiet, refreshing, and fun for Matt and I to have some time to ourselves. But it sure has been great to fill our house up with kids again!

All four boys were home for 20 hours, then Asa left again to go to a Leadership Camp. He’ll be home mid-week. But, we still have four boys around because one of my nephews came to stay for a few days. The weather has been beautiful – perfect for playing lots of baseball and soccer games in the yard, as well as jumping on the trampoline!

Here is what we’re looking at eating this week. If you see some good sounding recipes in this list, but no recipe links, that’s likely because those are recipes I’m experimenting with to include in a new {Healthy} Make Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook I’m working on for the fall. This Sweet Pecan French Toast Casserole was super easy to make and a huge hit with family and guests. That recipe will definitely make the book. :)

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Sunday, June 2
Sweet pecan french toast casserole, pears
Cheesy beef and pasta casserole, tossed salad, green beans, whole wheat butterhorns
Leftovers, pineapple-mango smoothies

Monday, June 3
Quick mix pancakes, fresh blueberries
Egg and veggie cups, tossed salad, fruit salad
Pasta with alfredo sauce, tossed salad, steamed broccoli and carrots

Tuesday, June 4
Pumpkin chocolate chip muffins, creamy orange cooler
Quesadillas, peas
Grilled barbecue chicken, potato wedges, green beans, watermelon

Wednesday, June 5
Whole wheat donuts (my niece is coming, and I promised we’d make these)  :)
Sloppy joes on homemade wheat buns, creamy cole slaw, fresh strawberries
Popcorn chicken, black bean salsa with chips, fresh cherries

Thursday, June 6
Easy breakfast casserole, oranges
Easy noodle stir-fry with broccoli, carrots, and zucchini, strawberry peach slushies
Turkey-ranch pinwheels, tossed salad, cantaloupe

Friday, June 7
Baked oatmeal, blueberries
Leftovers
Cookout with Asa’s friends to celebrate his b-day

Saturday, June 8 (Happy 16th to Asa!)
Waiting for him to get home to tell me what he wants to eat for his b-day. :)

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Our Family Service Trip Journal, Day 4: Church in Colorado Springs, Meet & Greet, Garden of the Gods

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In case you missed them…Day One: SEVENS Ministry, Day Two: Handing Out Food to 100 Families, and Day Three: Purple Door Coffee and a Wedding.

Did I ever tell you we used to live in Colorado Springs? Yep, from 1998-2002, Matt worked with a small congregation in the southern part of the city. In fact, our two middle boys, Justus and Elias, were born in Colorado Springs. Good memories! And so, we were excited to head down from Denver to Colorado Springs on Sunday morning to worship with the church family where we had worked for four years. 

We drove by the house we used to live in, saw the park where we used to play…and pretty much nobody remembered it but Matt and me since the boys were all so little while we had lived there! They still had fun having us point out all that we remembered.

Our former church family welcomed us with lots of hugs and plenty of, “I can’t believe how big your boys are!” The congregation is much smaller than it used to be, so we were glad to learn of some prayer needs there. Our goal was to encourage those that were there, so we are prayerful that God used our family in that way.

Later that afternoon, I was able to meet quite a few Colorado Springs area readers. I can’t tell you how much I enjoy the visits we have at these Meet & Greet events! We shared stories, recipe ideas, parenting tips…it was great. As soon as I’m able to put some of these thoughts in writing, you’ll be able to benefit from these visits too. (Just wait till I share the homemade cereal recipe I heard about!)

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Several brought their kids along, which I always love. They all got along great, playing board games and cards together while we ladies visited. I loved hearing some of the kids tell me, “I really love the recipe {fill in the blank} my mom makes from your website…” Yay for healthy recipe lovin’ kids (who don’t hate me because I’ve encouraged their moms to ditch the jelly beans)!

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Because the first four days of our trip had been so full, and because we had a big day of service ahead of us the next day in the northern part of Colorado Springs, we had made reservations at an inexpensive (but nice) hotel for the evening. I knew we’d all need some downtime to keep our wits about us. This ended up being the perfect treat. We checked into our hotel, kicked back for a little while, then headed out to experience Garden of the Gods together.

Did I ever tell you that Matt and I had our honeymoon in Colorado Springs? That was before we knew we’d live there someday and that two of our babies would be born there. Being back in Garden of the Gods brought back great memories from 18 1/2 years ago when we were newlyweds. How awesome it was now to head back there with our four boys!

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We thought we may not be able to walk around and enjoy the beauty because of the rain that had been threatening all afternoon and evening. Instead, we were blessed because the rain stopped AND we got to see a rainbow!

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The boys had a blast climbing (in the areas were the park allowed climbing).

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Don’t worry, Asa and Justus really aren’t as high up as they look…

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Here’s a great shot of Pike’s Peak:

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And a shot with Matt and I with Pike’s Peak behind us:

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This may be one of my favorites of all the boys:

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And of course, Mom and Dad had to get a picture in the same location. Hey, if the boys can be silly in pictures, so can we!

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Just before taking off for the hotel again, the boys climbed one last rock:

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And then they pushed each other off while screaming and crying. Kidding. I’m kidding.  They’re just good at adding drama to an otherwise normal climb down off of a boulder.

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I’m having so much fun re-living our trip while I share pictures and tell you about it. God is so good to give us such great learning experiences, opportunities to serve, wonderful people to meet, and awesome memories we’ll hold onto forever. Can’t wait to tell you about the rest of our trip!

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What If I Can’t Buy Raw Milk?

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“Laura, what would you do if you couldn’t get raw milk for your family?”

It’s a question I receive often – from those who either don’t have a good source for raw milk in their area or because the cost involved would cause them to take out a second mortgage.

Well, as of just a few weeks ago, our family is without our fresh, raw milk. So now I get to answer this question from first hand experience!

Why are we no longer getting grass fed, farm fresh, raw milk? (Oh, just typing all of that deliciousness makes me miss it!)  Thankfully, this is just a temporary change for us, as our milk supplier has dried up her cow for a few months. Come August, we’ll be getting the best of the best again. For just $5 a gallon. We are so spoiled!

In the meantime, I could call on other sources around here for raw milk. I decided not to do that for two reasons:  1) I felt it was rude of me to say, “Hi. I need some of your milk for three months, but then I’ll no longer need you again so really, it’s like I’m just using you right now.” and 2) I didn’t want to go to the trouble of figuring out all the details.

Lazy? Sort of. Mostly I just needed one less thing to do. Or I didn’t need one more thing to do. Or something like that.

So what are we doing about milk during these three months?

We have chosen to buy whole, organic milk from the store. It is likely from cows which were not entirely grass fed. It is very pastuerized and homogenized. But at least it doesn’t have growth hormones or antibiotics. It’s not the best, but it is a better choice, so I’m okay with it.

We’ve also chosen not to guzzle down three gallons of milk each week like we used to. We’ve used our one weekly gallon mainly for cooking.

I’ve taken a little break too from making yogurt, kefir, and buttermilk. I miss it! In the meantime, I’m getting organic whole milk yogurt from Azure Standard or Trader Joes when I have access.

I also stocked up on organic coconut milk when it was on sale at Vitacost a few weeks ago. That is great for a healthy variety, plus it’s perfect for making smoothies!

Come August, we’ll be having a raw milk party at our house. I can’t wait! In the meantime, I feel at peace with our choice to buy organic milk from the store.

What kind of milk works for your family? Raw milk, organic milk, regular milk, no milk, coconut milk, goat milk?  (Wow, look at all the choices!)

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Our Family Service Trip Journal, Day 3: Denver Meet & Greet and a Wedding

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Thanks for following along as I share the highlights of our family service trip to Colorado. If you missed the first days, catch up on those here –  Day One: SEVENS Ministry and Day Two:  Handing Out Food to 100 Families.

On the third day we were in Denver, we headed downtown to Purple Door Coffee. We were so excited to finally have a chance to check out this great ministry spot, which was started in part by a friend of ours who had been a York College student several years ago. The coffee shop is beautiful – very well put together! They employ homeless teens and young adults in an effort to help them get on their feet and find a new way of life. We love this! It was our pleasure to hold our Denver Meet and Greet at this location. It was a perk that their drinks were delicious too!

Call me a geek (go ahead, really) but I had to take a picture of the bottoms of their tables (that they made themselves). They are made from old treadle sewing machines – just like the one my grandma had used (and let me use!) many years ago. What a gorgeous way to reuse these beauties. I learned to sew on a machine like this!!

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In addition (although somehow I failed to get pictures, duh) – Purple Door Coffee had lots of really cool jars in use in their shop. I was in jar heaven. What a great place! 

Even better was that I was able to meet several Denver area readers. We had such an encouraging visit. Thank you for coming (and navigating the crazy parking situation that day!!) so that I could meet you!

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Later that evening, we were blessed to go to the wedding of one of the ladies on our YC soccer team. We are so proud of this girl and the choice she has made by beginning her life with such a godly young man. It was wonderful to be a part of her special day.

While I don’t have any pictures of the ceremony  (because I was too busy wiping happy tears from my eyes to take pics – seriously, I am a mess at weddings) I do have a fun picture of our family at the reception. A photo booth was provided for fun, and we were able to get a little bit silly while leaving a fun message for the bride and groom. Malachi was in there too, but unfortunately, he was a little too short to make it into the pics without jumping. If you look really hard, you can see a tuft of his hair right under Asa’s elbow. ;)

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Side note:  Have you ever tried to put six people into a photo booth? Yowza.

We headed back to our hosting friends’ home that evening, and made preparations to head to Colorado Springs the following day. More details to come!

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Free Download: Fun, Fabulous, and (mostly) Free Preschool Projects

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Do you have young kids at your house? Want some fun ideas for summer activities? If you haven’t downloaded our FREE eBook, grab it now! It’s loaded with ideas of fun, educational activities for all seasons of the year.

101 Preschool Projects Free Download

Grab this FREE 101 Pre-School Projects book here!

I’m excited to share that signing up for these freebies will connect you to our new Heavenly Homemaker’s Learning Zone. It’s free, of course. You can unsubscribe at any time, your info will never be shared or sold, and being on this list means that you’ll be the first to know of the other fun (yes, FUN!) educational tools we’re putting together!

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