Dave's Excellent Adventure

My husband is driving from South Carolina to Phoenix this weekend in our brand new Mercedes! Oh, just kidding. I meant to say our brand new Chevy 5500.



Isn't she a beauty? Now picture it with a great Interstate Batteries logo on the box part.




He is in Greenville right now. He has already driven in heavy rain and fog. Will you pray for his safety? I have heard I-40 is a mess in Oklahoma and that Dallas got hit real hard. (I just got off the phone with him and he has decided to take the Southern route.)

I thought he should stop along the way to say hello to all of my blog friends but he didn't think that was necessary. Imagine that.

If my husband read this blog he might have to correct the type of truck I picked but I'm 99% sure this is the one. Close enough. A truck is a truck is a truck. ;-)

Brrrrr!

A cold front moved in and it is cold and blustery tonight! It may get down into the low 30s where we live so I brought my potted plants (the ones I could carry) in out of the cold.





Don't they look pretty in my house? (sink)

This little girl is tucked in and cozy warm too.



Hot cocoa anyone?

Bitesize Book Review

When I find a great book I like to share it with as many people that will read it. I like to purchase several to have on hand and be able to give them away as needed. The book The Duties of Parents by J.C. Ryle is one of those books. I have purchased 10 at a time to be able share them with others.

I feel the same way about Bitesize Theology by Peter Jeffery. It's a little gem of a book. It is described as "an abc of the Christian faith". It has concise explanations of theological terms and concepts. I really like the "Think About It" section at the end of each chapter as well as the "It's Worth Quoting" quotes.




Here's what John MacArthur says about the book:

"Peter Jeffery has a unique gift for presenting difficult concepts precisely, with clear and simple language. Bitesize theology is both sound and simple- a combination that is all too rare in modern evangelical literature. This is an invaluable resource for both lay people and serious students of theology"


And here is a "It's Worth Quoting" quote from the chapter titled "God" to spark your interest:

"Nothing will so enlarge your intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity. Would you lose your sorrow? Would you drown your cares? Then go, plunge yourself in the Godhead's deepest sea; be lost in his immensity; and you shall come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated. I know nothing which can so comfort the soul; so calm the swelling billows of sorrow and grief; so speak peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead"

C.H. Spurgeon

Catch Up

Wednesday
Grandparent's Day At School















Thursday
Thanksgiving! I'm thankful.















Friday
Hiking






In this picture we are without Danielle and Sarah but have Nicholas with us. Don't mind my goofy face.




All is well. It has been a very fun few days. Thanksgiving was wonderful. Except my turkey wasn't completely cooked after 3 1/2 hours in the bag and it was time to eat. We were able to carve enough for everyone to enjoy and thankfully we also had a ham. After dinner I promptly threw the legs and wings and extra meat in to a stock pot and cooked up a huge batch of turkey broth. I'm pretty sure Tom was not completely thawed and that was the problem. Oh well, what can you do? I'm sure my soup will be delicious.

Have a great weekend!
Janet.

Oh So Cute

A friend brought her brand new Havenese puppies to school and I'm in love. They are absolutely precious. Her puppies are pure white and only 8 weeks old. She found the breeder in MO and they were shipped to Phoenix. I had not heard of this breed until now. Isn't he adorable? Maybe someday......

Pumpkin Bread

Recipe by Pillsbury
Pumpkin by Libby



2 C. pumpkin
3 C. sugar
1 C. oil
2/3 C. water
4 eggs
3 1/2 C. flour **
2 tsp. soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ginger

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bottoms only of two loaf pans. In large bowl, blend first 5 ingredients. Beat 1 minute at medium speed. Add remaining ingredients; blend at low speed until moistened. Beat one minute at medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350 for 60-75 minutes. Cool 5 minutes; remove from pans. Cool completely.

**I used 2 1/2 C. fresh ground soft white wheat and 1 C. white unbleached flour and it turned out just fine. Next time I'm going to try to decrease the amount of sugar by 1 C.

This is a no-fail recipe. The bread is always moist and delicious!!

I also use the Libby Pumpkin Pie recipe every year and it too is a winner.

Do you like pumpkin?

Anniversary and Delurk Day

It’s my One Year Blogiversary here at Just Janet. Hard to believe I’ve been doing this for one whole year. It has been an interesting year on this blog. I felt like quitting many times and lately my posts have been very lame and not consistent. I didn’t have a clear purpose for writing this blog when I started but it has evolved into something very special. I share this blog with my real life sisters in Wisconsin, Missori and Arizona and it is a wonderful way for me to keep in touch with them. In fact, I think this silly form of communication has brought us closer in our relationships. I also share this blog with other fine ladies; some live here in the Phoenix area and others around the country who I’ve met online. My goal now is to continue to share my life with my sisters and friends and to share the love of Christ with who ever will read this crazy blog. And may God be glorified!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





This is a special day, so if you are a lurker here at JJ, today is the day you should delurk and say hello. Don’t be shy.

What? Christmas Music Already?

Well, yes, when it's this good I have to share....




I am a huge fan of James Taylor and have listened to his music all of my life so when I saw this at Sam's Club I grabbed it. This is classic James. I think it can be described as folk/pop/jazz/blues Christmas. It has a nice mix of traditional and sacred.

He works with a man named Dave Grusin on this CD. I had not heard of this man but after reading a little about him I now know how talented he is and it is not a surprise that this CD is so good.

My favorite songs on this CD include Go Tell It On The Mountain, Some Children See Him and In The Bleak Midwinter.

Buy this CD, you won't be disappointed.

Fun little note about James Taylor. My brother Jim and his wife Susan (of ten years) live on Martha's Vineyard. Susan has known James for years and invited him to their wedding. My goofy sisters that attended the wedding were soooo excited to see James that they were snapping pictures with him in the background. Gee, do you think he noticed? I know I would have been even more of a goof had I been there.

OK, I'll put the CD away for one week. That's it. And then it's out for the remainder of the Christmas season.

ENJOY.

A Taste of Fall

The trees in Prescott were yellow.

They were stunning!



We had a wonderful time in spite of my upset stomach and 'issues' Friday night. Remember in my last post I mentioned I was feeling run down? Well, it hit me Friday night while we were in Prescott.

Hannah and Jessie helped me make my bed and Stacey and her mom juiced organic carrots and made me drink it. I crawled in to bed and slept. I was able to get up and enjoy Saturday, I think the carrots did the trick. I am seriously going to be shopping for a juicer. I've heard good things about the Omega brand juicer. I think if I set out to juice 3X/week that is a reasonable goal. Our family does not consume enough veggies so this will be a great way to get them down. I will probably start with carrots and apples and then experiment from there. I know parsley and beets are very good for you so eventually I should add them.









Anyway, all is well. We had a wonderful time with wonderful friends and I love the town of Prescott more with every visit. I could very easily live there full time.

This and That

Hello, I haven't really felt like posting lately. We've been very busy and I have felt a little worn down and very tired. Here's what has been happening...

* Volleyball ended two weeks ago and the girls were undefeated!

* Football ended last Saturday and the boys were undefeated!

* Today was an early release day and I had 9 girls here at the house. They ate pizza, fresh veggies and sweets and jumped on the trampoline, played volleyball and laughed loudly!

* Emmitt continues to WOW me every week. I remembered to watch. :)

* Mack, Nancy's 14 year old golden retriever who has lived with us for 3 years, is being a naughty boy when we are gone. If we have left a low window or the window next to our French doors open he busts through them. He has ruined 3 screens. The first time it happened Dave thought we had been broken in to and pretended he was Barney. Goof.

* Hannah and I get to go to Prescott on Friday with Stacey and Jessica and we will not hurry home on Saturday :) I am looking forward to a little get away. It will be nice and chilly up there.

* It looks like Nancy will be moving back to Wisconsin some day soon. Her house is on the market here in Phoenix. I am so sad. She has lived here for around 18 years and frankly I can't imagine what it will be like without her here. I woke up this morning and cried, poor Dave didn't really know what to say or do. She is like a mother to me and a very young and lovely grandmother to my children. She loves them and spoils them in such a sweet way. My emotions about this are very strange to me. I feel very sad and a little lost. Empty. Heart broken.

Well, now you can see why I didn't feel like posting much lately.

God Bless you today.
Janet.

Shortest Post Ever

:-)




Nuff said.