Let there be light

Here are some pictures from Oregon! This is the lighthouse that we went to: Yaquina Head. It is very near the condo that we stay at.
Here is the light...........
Here is a different shot........
Here I am in the top of the lighthouse.......(you can see all the land behind me through the windows.)
Way, way, way, down below my toes is a very cute little baby and her mother.

Those are just a few pictures from the trip. I will put some more later.

Just wait for the sunset pictures!

Knitting Time!

This is the sweater that I just finished! (except for the buttons, I still need to get those)

The pattern was invented by an english teacher, and let me tell you, it was a math nightmare!

I belive that I ended up knitting this sweater twice over with all the times that I had to rip out and get it right. But in the end it was a success and I was happy. Please DO NOT tell me that the colors are hippie colors. Thank you. I happen to like the colors as I was the one that picked them out. :)

This is a shot of the lower edge. It is called Fan and Feather, which I had never done before. I really liked it; I will have to make some more things with that stitch.

These are the fingerless gloves that I started months ago (and finished months ago), and I finally did the weaving of the seams and completed them. Sis was kind enough to wear them so that I could show you. :)

This is my project in the works right now. It is another toddler sized sweater (quicker to knit, and very cute--I had not made any kids sweaters untill recently, this will make three.) When I first saw the pattern I absolutely loved it. It uses three strands of lace-weight yarn at once (six on the ribbing), and alternates which colors are together so that the hues start dark at the bottom and work up to very light at the top. The ribbing includes all the colors and I will also be adding a button band on the front edge. So, that is my latest project---almost done!

Now this is one of my new inventions. (sorry the pic is sort of upside down, it still works) When I first heard that people could knit with plastic bags I was very excited (yipee! right?), but all that people really make are handbags (bags out of bags, lovely.) But I wanted something a little more exciting! Therefore I decided on the plastic bag flip-flops! This was my first attempt, and I admit I have not finished the match for this one, as I was not completely satisfied with it, but I will try again sometime when I get the motivation to go chop up more bags. Anyone recognize the bags? They are the ones from our CC bookstore! :) When someone would ask me what I was making when I was knitting this flip-flop I was quite embarrased, 'cause it seemed kind of a ridiculous idea. Oh well, they kinda worked out after all. Listen to this: my dad wantes me to make him ballet slipper style ones out of black trash bags so that he can have ultra-light shoes for backpacking (to have when he gets to camp)! It is going to be quite interesting trying to come up with a pattern, perhaps I will attempt it sometime.

Well, I hope this was not a complete bore to all of you non-knitters; I personally love this kind of stuff as you can see. Bye!

Awesome!

Check this out! We picked this apple off a tree here in town, and it appears to be albino! It is completely white! It is so cool! I wonder what the inside looks like.........should I cut it open?

I thought it looked pretty cool with the squash all around it.

This beats any of Buck's relatives by far. : )

Who Walks With God

He journeys far who walks with God;

The wonders of his way

No pen can tell, no brush portray

The glories of his day.

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He journeys swift who walks with God,

Stays not for time or tide;

He touches Heaven at a bound,

Takes planets in his stride.

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He journeys safe who walks with God,

His sword and shield the Word;

Serene he fares who buckles on

The armor of the Lord.

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He journeys home who walks with God;

The road is sure and straight.

It leads at last to jasper walls

And to an opened gate!

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by Martha Snell Nicholson

Backpacking!!!!!!!!!!

Backpacking was absolutely a blast this year. These are just a few of the pictures. Everything is just so beautiful! The lakes, the flowers, the sunsets, the rocks (love 'em!!), even the frogs! We got to go crashing through the wilderness from lake to lake while I lead with compass (oh no!), which was very fun. Watch out, I always take the high side so we can climb!! I swam in the lake, slept on a giant boulder with the wind in my face, drank plenty of tea, ate fish (we had a pro fisherman with us!), chased frogs and butterflies, and.................God gave me a new song!
It was an amazing trip.

Bro's 1st Benefit of Eating Like a Horse

Okay, so you wanted to hear about my Bro!!! (why?)

I don't know what you wanted to hear about him, and I thought I would spare you (and him) any embarrassing 2nd grade stories and just give you a little video I took of him a while back. Please excuse the sideways-ness (heehee), I was not at all thinking about a blog when I took this video, just having fun with my Bro. (The background music wasn't planned either! :)

Be sure to pause the ipod so that you can hear it.

Psalm 89:15-18

Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!

They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance.

In Your name they rejoice all day long,

And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

For You are the glory of their strength,

And in Your favor our horn is exalted.

For our shield belongs to the LORD,

And our king to the Holy One of Israel.

Four Questions

What cries out for the living God?

What thirsts for the living God?

What shall I see in the land of the living?

Why may I walk before God in the light of the living?

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If you know the answers, please post them. :) Then there is one more question we must all ask:

Is it true??

This is how it is meant to be! I was reading Psalm 84, and when I got to verse 2 I suddenly thought: Is this true? Right now, in my life, is this really true? Oh sure my heart cries out for You, God. But my flesh?! My flesh cries out for anything and everything but the living God! Can flesh really cry out for You? I want it to be so. Let it be so! God, make my flesh and my heart and every fiber of my being cry out for You and be filled with You so that nothing is left of me, but all You!

The life that God wants us to live is shown so clearly in His living Word. There are so many promises and blessings that He is just waiting to pour out on us, if we would just turn to Him, cry out to Him, wait on Him. So many times I get too comfortable and think that this is the closest that I will ever get to Him, the most I will ever see of Him. But that is not true! He has so much more--- if I will just press closer to Him and draw near to Him, then He will draw near to me!

Flubberdubber Pie

This is a recipe for my new pie. If you are wondering about it's name, that is my newest word, which I lovingly gave to my pie. It is BREAKFAST PIE. Yes, pie for breakfast. Yummy! Fresh from the oven, nice and hot---not left over from last night.

Please do not freak out about the Rapadura. When I first saw it in our cupboard, I was told that it was an ancient sweetener that has been used in India for years, and that I could just use it to replace sugar. Well then I smelled it, and wheww, it smells like the Senior Feed that my grandma gives to her horses! (not to mention it looks like it too)

But once I got the courage up to try it, I'm afraid I got hooked , and it really does have a pleasant molasses-like smell. :)

So if you really can't handle it, go ahead and use brown sugar or something, I promise I won't throw a fit.

1.

Ingredients for the crust:

1 cup barley flour, 2 T Rapadura, 1/3 cup coconut oil (melted), 1/2 t salt, 2 T cold water

In a small bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and Rapadura. With fork, stir in half the oil until even crumbs form. Then pour in the water and the rest of the oil and just barely stir it until you can shape it into a ball. When I came up with this recipe I instantly learned that barley flour does not just roll out and plop into the pie dish, so before I gave up and went to see if my dog would eat it, I decided to press it into the pan. Well, that worked perfectly. So press it evenly into a deep dish pie plate, all the way up the sides. Set it aside.

2.

Ingredients for the filling:

2 cups whole milk, 1/4 cup pure maple syrup, 1/2 cup Grape Nuts, 1/2 cup Rapadura, 3 T butter (cut into pieces) , 1/2 t vanilla extract, 3 eggs (lightly beaten), 1/2 cup dried cranberries, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, 1/4 t ground cinnamon, 1/4 cup unsweetened finely shredded coconut (I suppose this could be optional if you are one of those strange people who do not like coconut.).)

Combine the milk, Grape Nuts, maple syrup, and Rapadura in a medium-large saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer untill somewhat thickened, 7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the butter, one piece at a time, and the vanilla. Let cool for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Whisk the eggs into the cooled mixture. Stir in the cranberries, walnuts, and cinnamon. Slowly pour the filling into the pie crust.

Pop it into the oven one the center rack and bake untill the filling is set. It takes about 40 minutes, so I just set the timer for 20 minutes, rotate it 180 degrees, then set the the timer for another 20 minutes, and it's done.

Serve warm, or cold the next day is just as good.

You can try a different type of nut if you want, or raisins instead of cranberries, or whatever random things that you want. Enjoy!

How Can I Keep From Singing?

The following is a poem by Robert Lowry. When I first read it a few years ago it became my favorite, but I had forgotten about it untill I came across it again recently. I realized how closely it links to my thoughts in the last post, so I thought I would share it with you. I especially love the second verse.

I think it describes perfectly what our walk with Jesus is like when we are completely surrendered to Him and so in love with Him that all we can do is sing!

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My life flows on in endless song

above earth's lamentation

I hear the sweet though far off hymn

that hails a new creation:

Through all the tumult and the strife

I hear the music ringing;

It finds an echo in my soul---

How can I keep from singing?

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What though my joys and comforts die?

The Lord my Savior liveth;

What though the darkness gather round?

Songs in the night He giveth:

No storm can shake my inmost calm

while to that refuge clinging;

Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,

How can I keep from singing?

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I lift mine eyes; the cloud grows thin;

I see the blue above it;

And day by day this pathway smoothes

since first I learned to love it:

The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing:

All things are mine since I am His---

How can I keep from singing?