Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Merry Christmas and a Hoppy New Year ~ Simple Craft for Kids

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I originally posted this fun craft idea back in 2008. That translates to the dark ages ago in blog years. Not only did you probably not know this idea existed on my site – I had even forgotten all about it.

Hoppy New Year Christmas Craft

I think that frog is too cute to be ignored, and that this craft is to simple not to bring to your attention. For those of you who love detailed craft projects – this one will not interest you and I say, “You go, Girl!” I am simply not super gifted in the crafting arena, so I stick with cut out frogs, hole punches, and candy canes.

Supplies you will need:

  • Red cardstock, cut in half and folded over to make a card
  • Frog pattern
  • Green cardstock for frogs
  • Print out of Merry Christmas sign
  • Googly eyes
  • Candy canes
  • Blow markers (optional)
  • Markers
  • Glue bottle
  • Glue stick
  • Hole punch
  • Scissors

To Make:

Print frog pattern, trace onto green cardstock and cut out. Punch a hole on both sides of the frog. Carefully slide candy cane through the holes to look like the frog is “holding” it. Draw a smile onto the frog. Use green blow marker to make “speckles” (optional).

Use a glue stick to glue frog onto card. Glue googly eyes on with glue bottle.

Use glue stick to attach “Merry Christmas and a HOPPY New year” sign to card.

It’s as easy as that. Your kids can enjoy making these cards for classmates, Bible class teachers, neighbors – whoever you’d like to bless. :)

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Menu Plan for the Week – and a Peek Into Our Thanksmas

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I hope you have had a wonderful holiday weekend! We had a great time with family in Kansas, bringing back Asa’s “new” 20-year-old car on our way home. So exciting for him!

Here’s a picture of my beautiful (quiet, well-put-together) family:

thanksmas 2014 3

Nice, huh? But God bless my sister-in-law for snapping the following picture on my phone as we were posing for the one you see above.

thanksmas 2014 2

If that’s not the real Coppinger family, I don’t know what is.
I had a nice giggle when I discovered that jewel on my phone. 

After individual family shots, we attempted to get 13 grandkids – ages 3-weeks to 17-years – all in one picture. I’ve decided that photos like this are so much better than perfectly posed shots.

thanksmas 2014 1

We had a great time together, you can bet on it. :)

Not a single one of us got up early to go Black Friday shopping. But here’s something fun to share:  When we got back to Nebraska, the weather had turned beautiful! Malachi and I took a walk to the dollar store to look for something I needed for a quick project. I didn’t find what I needed, but I did happen upon a 75% off clearance section. I grabbed a few potholders and dish rags, thinking they would be about 25¢ each after the discount. When they rang up, it turns out they were already discounted to around 30¢ each – then I got 75% off that price! I ran back and grabbed more, of course. My total for all you see below was less than $3.00 total. Amazing and fun!

groceries november 14 4

I didn’t get any steals when I made a produce run later, but hey – it’s food. Good food at that. :)

groceries november 14 5

I picked up mixed greens, avocados, sweet peppers,
oranges, carrots, pineapple, and mushrooms.

Since it was such a nice day on Saturday, and since we were hungry for lots of veggies, I put together a big pasta salad. It was so pretty, I had to take a picture. By the way, adding spinach to pasta salad works very, very well.

pasta salad

A cold front is moving back in, but a couple days of warm weather sure was a treat! Now we’ll be getting back to soups and hot drinks. I’m still loading us up with pumpkin. I have plenty, and all the recipes are delicious and healthy – so why not?

Here’s what our menu options will be this week:

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Fruits and Veggies (I serve 1-4 with each meal)

  • Peas
  • Green Beans
  • Mixed Greens
  • Spinach
  • Broccoli
  • Carrots
  • Asparagus
  • Spaghetti Squash
  • Spicy Avocado Dip
  • Clementines
  • Fresh Pineapple
  • Pears
  • Apples
  • Applesauce
  • Sweet Peppers

notebook 2

Did you brave the crowds and go shopping on Friday? What’s your menu looking like this week?

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Easy Pumpkin Pie Bars

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Wow, Laura. Another pumpkin recipe? Really?

Actually, I used butternut squash puree in this recipe, so there. But yes, it’s another pumpkin (aka butternut squash) recipe. I told you I was on a roll with pumpkin recipe experiements. I’m here to provide you with easy recipes – and also to force you to eat vegetables. What better way than in a dessert? (And in a salad, of course.)

You’ll notice that I loved the Shortbread Crust idea so much in the Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe that I stole the idea for this crust too. This is basically Shortbread with Pumpkin Pie baked on top – all in a 9×13 inch pan. No rolling of a pie crust necessary. Easy, buttery, delicious – what more could we want?

Easy Pumpkin Pie Bars

Easy Pumpkin Pie BarsYum

Shortbread Crust

3 cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground hard white wheat for this)
1/2 cup sucanat (or brown sugar if you prefer)
1 1/2 cups melted butter

Stir flour and sucanat together in a bowl. Add melted butter, combining well. Press mixture into a 9×13 inch baking pan. Bake in a 350° oven for 7 minutes. (It will only be partially cooked at this point.)  In the meantime, prepare the filling:

Pumpkin Pie Filling

3 cups pumpkin or butternut squash puree
2/3 sucanat
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup heavy cream

Whip ingredients together until smooth. Pour over crust. Bake in a 350° oven for 45-55 minutes or until a knife inserted into the bars comes out clean.

Have you had your fill of pumpkin this holiday season?

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When Thanksgiving and Christmas Collide ~ And It’s a Good Thing

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give thanks

Today, my family is celebrating Thanksmas. Hey, it’s a real thing. It’s when Thanksgiving and Christmas collide because of travel plans and family circumstances. We won’t be able to see my Kansas family on December 25. Instead, we’re celebrating both holidays together – today, at the same time.

“Oh no!” one might think. “We should never skip through Thanksgiving and jump into Christmas, forgetting to be thankful.”

I’ll agree with you completely on one point:  We should never forget to be thankful.  Never, ever.  But blending the two holidays? I have decided that it’s perfect. I’ve also decided that this same concept is perfect in the middle of February, early in April, and during summer break. After all, if I only choose to consider “what I’m thankful for” during Thanksgiving season and “how wonderful it is that God sent Jesus to earth” during the Christmas season – I have completely missed some major Truths in the Bible about who I’m called to be, and where my heart should be focused.

Hooray for holidays that bring our attention back to these important areas of focus! But not only do I disagree that we shouldn’t blend the holidays, I believe we’ve actually missed something very important if we don’t.

Our God is an amazing God – today, on December 25, and even on Black Friday, if you can possibly imagine. But, ack! What about all the commercialism?! Marketing tools! Flyers and ads and sales – they are everywhere this time of year! That is a true fact.

Also a true fact:  There are gimmicks and commercials and marketing ploys 365 days of the year – all of which are insisting I need their product in order to have a full and happy life. The only difference right now is that commercials slap the words “gift giving” on the reason they’re asking us to buy stuff. At least it’s better than telling us to buy something for ourselves because “we’re worth it,” wouldn’t you say?

Are we losing Thanksgiving because of all the Christmas hype? My thought is that it’s not up to what time the stores open their doors, or the fact that some are not closing theirs at all. It’s not up to sale flyers or commercials. It’s up to you and me.  It’s about our heart focus. Nothing in our lives can be separated. I don’t care when you shop, what you buy, how much you spend, or whether you ate turkey or ham. Jesus and a thankful heart go hand in hand, every single day – no matter the holiday, season, or date on a calendar.

For the record, today, not only am I celebrating Thanksgiving (so much to be thankful for!) and Christmas (how exciting that God sent His Son!) – I’m also celebrating Easter (praise God, Jesus died and rose again!) and Valentine’s Day (Love you, Matt!! XOXOXO). I’ll celebrate it all over again tomorrow. And since tomorrow just so happens to be Black Friday, I might also pick up a good deal or two. Bonus!

Have a blessed holiday season! May our hearts yearn for Truth, may our souls find peace, may we always be grateful.

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Beef Summer Sausage Recipe

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Summer Sausage has always been a favorite finger food of mine during the holiday season. I’ve tinkered with recipes before, but haven’t felt like I’ve nailed them – until now.

Folks, we can now eat Summer Sausage – worry free. High fives all around!  No MSG, no nitrites, no preservatives. Actually, salt is a natural preservative, so I guess I can’t say “no preservatives.” But the least of my worries is sea salt, especially when I use Redmond. That means that “summer sausage” and “good for you” can be used in the same sentence. Yay!!!

I think you’ll be as excited about this recipe as I am. It’s homemade beef summer sausage!! You will not believe how crazy easy this is to make.

Homemade Beef Summer Sausage - Easy and Healthy!

Homemade Beef Summer SausageYum

5.0 from 1 reviews
Beef Summer Sausage Recipe
 
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Author:
Serves: 2 sausages
Ingredients
  • 2½ pounds hamburger meat
  • 2½ Tablespoons liquid smoke (I prefer Wright's Brand)
  • 1 Tablespoon sea salt (I prefer Redmond brand)
  • 1 teaspoon sucanat
  • 1 Tablespoon ground pepper
  • 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon mustard seeds
Instructions
  1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl, squishing with your hands until everything is well combined. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
  2. Knead meat mixture, then shape into 2 logs, about 13x2 inches each. (I found that rolling them in parchment paper helped form a nice, round shape.)
  3. Place logs in baking dishes such as Pyrex 9x13 inch pans (so fat drippings will not spill over into the oven).
  4. Bake in a 300° oven for 2½ - 3 hours.

To freeze Summer Sausage:  Allow baked summer sausage to cool completely. Wrap in parchment paper, then with plastic wrap. Place in a freezer bag, storing in freezer for up to 2 months.

As if it wasn’t already wonderful news that we can enjoy healthy summer sausage – it’s even better news that this will be perfect for your Make-Ahead Lunch Box. I’ll be packing this for road trips, for sure.

Share with us! What’s your favorite holiday finger food?

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Gratituesday: The Big Purchase

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gratituesday[2]

You know how exciting it is when your baby first get a tooth, takes a first step, and says his/her first word? I have to tell you, this past week has ranked right up there as one of the most exciting “firsts” for our family, particular for oldest son, Asa. Allow me to introduce to you the newest member of our family:

asa car

Yes indeed, our 17 year old has purchased his first car.

It’s been quite the event. My dad, Asa’s “Papa,” called a few weeks ago to let us know he may have found a good car if Asa was interested. My dad is an auctioneer, so he frequently comes across items of interest. The car isn’t new, and it isn’t fancy, but if Asa wanted something reliable, this could be perfect. It had been owned by an older person who hadn’t driven it much and had taken good care of it.

We did a lot of research, loving that although the car is old (1994), it has low mileage and a good reputation. Asa decided on a price to bid for the car, and left it in Papa’s hands since the auction was in Kansas. Our family went on to play in a Basketball Triangular all day Saturday while my dad carried on with his auction at the same time. As we were heading home after a long day on the basketball court, the text from my dad came in, “Asa owns a car.”

Shouting and high fives and all around.  He had won the bid! Not only that, he got a lower price for it than we had expected – a blessing for sure!

We are so proud of Asa. He has been working hard and saving his money for years. This purchase was a wise one, and very doable for him because of the way he’s handled his money through the years. He’s even still got a savings cushion (which hurts him on the FAFSA, as we are now learning – don’t even get me started).

He’ll get to bring his car home after our Thanksgiving trip to Kansas, so the timing for this purchase couldn’t be better. As always, God worked this one out just right.

There’s much to be thankful for, and while it’s especially on our minds this time of year, I’m grateful to celebrate God’s goodness each week here during Gratituesday! Your turn to share: What are you thankful for?

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What Are Your Favorite Family Games?

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Our family loves playing games, especially now that all four kids are old enough and able to play games we all enjoy. Finding a chunk of time that works for all six of us to sit down and play together is rare, so when we find it, we jump on it!

What Are Your Favorite Family Games

We are trying to come up with a new family game or group game to get our kids for Christmas this year. Because you are all brilliant and always full of great ideas, I thought I’d ask you what games you love at your house. First, I’ll give you a list of what we already have and enjoy together:

  • Settlers of Catan (with extentions)
  • Ticket to Ride
  • Carcossonne
  • Bohnanza
  • Life
  • Risk
  • Manhattan
  • Guestures
  • Taboo
  • Blink (Malachi and I play this quick card game a lot while the older brothers are at basketball practice.)
  • Headbandz
  • Acquire
  • Sequence
  • Clue
  • Apples to Apple Junior (This is probably our favorite group game.)
  • Scattergories
  • Pictionary
  • Cranium
  • Boggle (This game totally counts as school work, but no one knows they’re learning.)
  • Monopoly
  • Sorry
  • Quelf
  • Racko
  • Balderdash
  • Yahtzee
  • Farkle
  • Pass the Pigs
  • Huskerdu (great for younger kids – still fun for adults)
  • Mastermind

Wow, after making that list, it kind of makes me wonder if we actually need another game this Christmas. We have oodles in our closet! Still, tell me your favorites. Our lives may just not be complete yet without one more game. :)

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Menu Plan for the Week – Plus This Week’s Grocery Pictures

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Here we are, beginning Thanksgiving week already! We’ll head to Kansas to spend time with family later this week, thus the abbreviated menu plan below. Since my side of the family won’t be together again at Christmas time, we’ll be celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas all in the same weekend.

groceries nov4

Home-canned goodies make great gifts!

Here’s a picture of this week’s grocery store run. See that nine year old boy hiding behind the groceries? He was on sale, and I couldn’t resist.

groceries nov3

We’ll be enjoying the special treat of Chex Mix over the holiday.

Our Amazon Subscribe and Save order came this week. I got such good deals – and they are all over my storage room. Not only have I not had time to put them away, it’s freezing in there! I’ll do it….later. ;)

groceries nov

My new Menu Planning Notebook is proving to be soooo much fun – and super helpful too. Do you have yours put together yet? As you can see, I shared my work space with cookie cutters. Malachi and I were getting cookies ready to take to Kansas. :)

groceries nov2

Here’s what my menu plan ended up looking like for this week:

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Fruit and Veggie Side Dishes (I serve 1-4 with each meal)

  • Pears
  • Applesauce
  • Peas
  • Green Beans
  • Asparagus
  • Broccoli
  • Sweet Peppers
  • Petite Carrots
  • Clementines
  • Grapes
  • Apples
  • Mixed Greens
  • Spinach
  • Romaine
  • Raspberries
  • Fresh Pineapple

What are your Thanksgiving plans this week?

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Simple Pumpkin Pancakes

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It might be apparent to you at this point that I am on a big pumpkin kick right now. First Pumpkin Breakfast Cake, then Pumpkin Cheesecake, now Simple Pumpkin Pancakes. It’s just one more way to add vegetables to our table, plus it’s delicious – so why not? That, and I have oodles of pumpkin puree at my house right now, so I’m making everything I can think of. My family rejoices.

It is important to note that I often use butternut squash in many of the pumpkin recipes I am making. Pumpkin and butternut squash are interchangeable in recipes. Many a pumpkin pie at my house is actually butternut squash pie, but don’t tell.

Want to know how to easily cook a pumpkin (or butternut squash)? Cooking them whole is the easiest way I’ve found to cook them to make puree. Once pureed, I use it right away or freeze it until I need it. Awesome, nutritious goodness!

These Pumpkin Pancakes stir together in just a few minutes and taste fantastic. Veggies for breakfast…woot!

Simple Pumpkin PancakesYum

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground hard white wheat)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/4 cups milk
1/4 cup melted butter

Whisk ingredients together until smooth. Cook on a hot, buttered griddle, flipping once the pancake becomes bubbly on the first side. Serve with applesauce or real maple syrup. Makes about ten 3-inch pancakes.

Simple Pumpkin Pancakes

Other pumpkin (or butternut squash) recipes you’ll find here:

What’s your favorite way to use pumpkin (or butternut squash)?

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Lord, Get Me Off This Crazy Brain Train

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All aboard! Who’s with me? We’re heading south toward Crazy, passing through Unproductive, Distracted, and Terribly Unpleasant along the way.

Lord! Get me off this Crazy Brain Train!

Do you know what’s great about women? We are multi-taskers. We can get things done like nobody’s business. Our brains are wired to think about what to make for dinner – while we’re switching out laundry, while we’re on the phone setting up an appointment, while we’re watching the kids to make sure they are safe. This is a gift! God made us this way!

Satan though. He’s a sly one. He likes to take what God did and flip a switch – just a tiny one – to mess up what God created perfectly and turn it into something miserable. He makes it seem okay, or at the very least, he makes it easy for us to shift the blame to others so that we not only justify our actions and attitudes – we don’t even recognize them for what they are: sinful.

So hello, fellow multi-taskers. Praise God with me for the gift He’s given us to be able to think of so many productive and meaningful thoughts at the same time. But be on guard with me, too. This unique and blessed gift often causes more anxt, worry, and fear than godly productivity. I can make breakfast, plan dinner, be mad at my husband, be worried about my teenagers, and re-play a conversation with a friend that’s bothering me – all at the same time. This is multi-tasking in a gruesome form.

The noise is deafening – turning my focus in eight different directions at the same time – none of them focused upward. I hear the battles raging for my mental energy to dwell on what I can not change. I groan inwardly at all I wish I would have said and what I hope she heard when we visited. I look ahead four years and try to create the impossible. It’s loud here. It’s confusing. It’s physically exhausting.

The Crazy Brain Train. We have got to get off.  Don’t even wait for the next stop. Just take a huge breath and jump. You’ll be safe. What? Like it’s any better aboard the train? What holds us here? Do we enjoy the crazy?

Take Every Thought Captive

You know how we gain knowledge of God? We read His Word.  Like we need food and water – we devour everything He has to say. We feast on it with our very breath. His Truth becomes our life. Our sustenance.

You know how we demolish arguments and every idle thought that wants to make itself more important than the words the Father is trying to tell us? We take the thought captive.  We stop the thought in its tracks. We drop-kick it in the name of Jesus. We listen to God’s voice – the voice we can only hear when we get rid of the other noise and listen to His – strong and clear. We replace the ugly, unproductive thoughts with Truth.

His Truth silences the crazy.

“…Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…” Hebrews 12:1-2 (read the whole chapter!)

Hearing too much noise and not able to hear God? Look up!!  Fix your eyes on Jesus. Let the Lord take you off the Crazy Brain Train so that you can enjoy the Peaceful Heart He is waiting to give you.

Still multi-tasking? You bet. We’re killin’ it, knocking out everything on the to-do list God calls us to do. But our hearts and minds are at peace. We’re using this gift, and we’re doing it right – with our eyes fixed on Him.

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