The stories you send in continue to be such an inspiration and encouragement to me! You will love reading Cantina’s story of how she is finding ways to make do in a tiny kitchen with very little to work with after her home burned down. God is so good to provide and equip us. Here’s Cantina:

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Dear Laura,

I started following you a couple of years ago and our family has loved some of your recipes. One of our favorites is Cheesy Beef and Rice (I add black beans and diced tomatoes to make it a “mexican” meal).

Last December we lost our home to a house fire and it has been extremely difficult to fix the meals that I used to. For a few months we lived with an older couple and then in May our family of 7 moved into a travel trailer on the land where we are rebuilding our home. It has been a challenge to fix anything, but God is so good and I have learned to use a Fry Daddy in ways I never thought were possible. And we bought an electric skillet and crock pot. :)

I have fixed the Cheesy Beef and Rice by browning the meat in the Fry Daddy and then cooking the rice in the Fry Daddy and finally mixing it all together in a large bowl and baking it in the electric skillet. My family is so happy that we can have some of your delicious recipes again. I have also made the Hearty Green Bean Casserole the same way. Looking forward to our house getting done, buying new kitchen items, and being able to cook in a real kitchen again.

We also love your Giant Breakfast Cookies and Baked Oatmeal for breakfast! In the past month we have visited family that lives out of town and I baked several batches of Giant Breakfast Cookies to freeze and eat on when we returned back home. The day we left from the visit with family I baked a dish of Baked Oatmeal and we had it for breakfast the next morning at the travel trailer.

Although this time in our lives has been tough our prayer is that God would be glorified through our family and our situation. He has continued to provide for us and meet our every need! We serve an amazing God!

Thank you Laura for all you do!
Cantina

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This sure makes me appreciate my kitchen! I believe it can also help us all recognize that none of us have to have perfect circumstances in order to feed our families well. We just need to be creative and trust God!

Please keep sending in your stories! These have become my favorite emails to receive. Getting a peek into your lives is refreshing and encouraging. You are all amazing!