4th of July

We had a great 4th weekend! We hope and pray that in the midst of the fireworks and parades and barbeques, that you took the time to reflect on what this day really is all about - our freedom and those who gave their lives for it! A very special thank you to all of our servicemen and women who sacrifice so much for our freedom!

Here are a few pictures of our day:

At the annual parade!

In the afternoon, we went to a baseball game - a bunch of people from our church went also. It was really fun!

Some people who attend our church

At the fireworks - this is my cousin Rachel and uncle Bob - they were being goofy and put on these 3D glasses so that the firework experience was more enjoyable! Oh brother....

:-)

Yes, we are wearing jackets - it was cold and rainy basically all day! Not an ideal day!

Happy late Fourth of July!

Grass Band

This is a hilarious video of mom and Deanna and their "grass band"! Hope you enjoy it! Remember to pause the music on my sidebar!

Babies, Weddings, and Concerts....

We have had a really busy last couple of weeks - and I have lots of pictures! Two Sundays ago, Deanna, Nikki, and I all attended the wedding of some friends of ours - they attend the church that we used to pastor. But before the wedding, we went over to some other friends' house (is this confusing?) to see their new neice! She was adorable!

Deanna holding little Laura Beth

This is at the wedding of Justin and Kala! This is the groom (Justin) walking his soon-to-be Mother-in-law down the aisle.

This was kind of funny because it was a little windy, and they were having problems getting it to stay down

Here comes Kala!

The newly-married couple!

Then this last Sunday night, we went to see the Brown family in concert! They were wonderful! So down-to-earth and it was great to watch them play their violins!

But the biggest highlight was Holiness Camp last week! It was another amazing week - and I have TONS of pictures! But I don't have time to put them all up right now, but I will really soon!

a very present help

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling."

Psalm 46:1-3

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Meatballs

As you are reading this I am in Oskaloosa, Iowa, for the Iowa Holiness Camp! But, I didn't want all of you to get bored if there was not a post for a week and a half! =) So, last Saturday I wrote this and scheduled it to post today.



There should be plenty of pictures when I get back - pics of camp and hopefully of a wedding that we went to on Sunday (if I remember to take any).



Meanwhile, I thought I'd post a recipe for Tori's Tasty Tuesdays. This weeks' is a DELICIOUS recipe for meatballs - they are to die for.

Colorado Meatballs:

Ingredients for the meatballs:

• 1 cup milk
• 1 1/3 cup oatmeal
• 2/3 c. onion - chopped fine
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 1/3 Tbsp. chili powder
• 2 lb. ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/3 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. pepper

Ingredients for sauce:

• 2 cups catsup
• 1 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 T. liquid smoke
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Mix meatball ingredients together and shape into small balls. Place in a flat shallow pan in one layer.

Sauce: dissolve and pour over meat ball - bake uncovered 1 hour at 350 degrees.

There you have it! Enjoy!

One Year Ago

This is the one year anniversary of the summer of 2008 floods here in Iowa. It's hard to believe it's been one year already! It seems like yesterday that we were hauling out wet and muddy items, ripping up hardwood floors, and powerwashing walls. Pretty incredible. For those of you who weren't following my blog during that time, last June, Iowa was hit with horrific flooding. It wiped out so much - many are still homeless. Our family was hit directly - our entire basement and a portion of our main floor was flooded - and my grandparents and aunt and uncle were also hit. But the Lord has provided for all of us in an incredible way - we are so thankful! Many people are still hurting and without homes - still be praying for them! Here is a video that was made last year by Nazarene Compassionate Ministries - it interviews people from our home church (as well as my dad) about the floods. Remember to pause the music on my sidebar! If the video decided not to work, then you can watch it at this link.



Here are some pictures of the flood.....

A very special thank you again to the team that came from Knoxville, Iowa to help us! As we reflect again on that time, we are so grateful for your help and realize that we couldn't have accomplished nearly that much if it weren't for you! Thank you!

Also, thanks to David and Kirk for providing us with these pictures that they took while they were here.

All of our ruined piano music

Trying to salvage what we can

Another BIG thank you to Megan and Caleb, who came up and helped us tremendously! Thank you so much, guys! We couldn't have done it without you!

So again, a big thank you to EVERYONE who helped us! There are just too many to name, but we appreciate each and every one of you!!

This Sunday, Iowa Holiness Association Campmeeting starts - please be in prayer for this incredible week!

garage sales and snickerdoodles

We've been busy this last week getting for a garage sale - then we had it Friday and Saturday. It turned out pretty good - except Saturday it rained, so there weren't many customers. But we had fun!

Nikki had a little "Snack Bar"

I also thought I'd post the recipe for the snickerdoodle cookies that Nikki made for the sale! These are super good!!

• 1 C. soft shortening
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 C. sugar
• 2 3/4 C. flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 T. sugar
• 2 T. cinnamon

Mix together shortening, sugar, and eggs. Sift flour and measure; add cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; sift again. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and mix well. Form into balls about the size of a walnut. Place about 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet after they have been rolled in cinnamon and sugar mixture. Bake 10 minutes in 350 degrees oven.

Enjoy!

Oh, and I wanted to let you know that I added some new songs to my playlist on the bottom of my sidebar. There are some great songs on there - so turn up the volume!