Pinned it, Made it! Monday ~ Week 11 ~

It’s that time again. I know you’ve been browsing Pinterest and pinning wonderful ideas to those boards……so won’t you come share what you’ve been up to?

This week, I have a couple of things to share. The first one was my intended thing to share.  The second one just happened to fit into this week.  :)

It’s a heavenly scent! As a matter of fact, that’s the name of my Pinterest board where it can be found.

Here’s the original pin:

Source:  AnnnMarie

For about 3-4 days, I saved the orange peels (in a Ziploc baggie) from the oranges Luke ate.

Just add those orange peelings and about a ½ tsp of cinnamon to a pot on the stove and turn on low and let it simmer.  I actually added a little more cinnamon than that…maybe more close to tsp.

Oh the wonderful smell that filled my kitchen! I remember now seeing this in homes simmering on the stove that we visited during our annual Christmas tour of homes. So when I came across it on Pinterest, it jogged my memory and I knew I wanted to try it.

It’s very easy of course and the scent really is heavenly!

The second thing I have to share was pinned to my Sweet Treats board while visiting my friend, Lois (Walking on Sunshine).  She loves to cook (and is a good one) and when I saw these pumpkin muffins, I knew I wanted to make them, which I actually did this afternoon. My mom cooked a big pot of homemade beef stew and made cornbread and invited us over.  And so I took these yummy treats over for dessert. Visit Lois for yummy recipes and more. You can find her recipe for these pumpkin muffins here. She’d love for you to stop by and visit!

I had a little helper this afternoon mixing up our batch of pumpkin muffins.

Your turn! I can’t wait to see what YOU’VE been pinning and making! I hope you'll link up and join me!

To participate in Pinned it, Made it! Monday, here are the guidelines:

1) Just do a post about what you’ve pinned and made from Pinterest, then come back over here to Country Girl at Home and link that particular post (not your blog in general) on this post below.

2) I don’t mind if you link up more than one post….multiple entries are fine.

3) You must add my Pinned it, Made it! Monday button on your post or sidebar of your blog linking back to Country Girl at Home. You may get this button code on the page at the top of my blog labeled “Buttons”. Just copy and paste the code into your post.

4) Be supportive and visit blog entries. I do ask that you visit at least one and leave a comment there. And don't forget to leave me one here! :) We all love comments, don’t we? It’s encouraging and uplifting!

5) By linking up and participating, you give me permission to use your entry photo if I decide to feature an entry.

********************************************** 

Thanks for stopping by today!  Have a great week!  :)

 ♥ Tammy ♥

♥ My Carpenter ♥

I have a carpenter that brings reality to my dreams! I never take it for granted either. If I think it up, he eventually makes it for me. I did say eventually……after all, he does work a full time job. But he does love to build things and I love for him to build things. He’s my hubby! :)

Today, I thought I’d take you through our home and show you what he’s made, at least some of the bigger pieces anyway.  Some of the photos were taken with my husband's point and shoot camera, therefore couldn't be enlarged and others were taken with my camera and those are biggie sized.  :)  

We’ll begin out in The Cedar Loft (which serves as our home-away-from-home/apartment/pool house):

TV Cabinet

 

Now coming back into the house on the sunporch:



coffee table made from old window

 

Potting bench made from a door

Through the back door from the sunporch, into the kitchen:

My favorite!  My Red Cupboard

Dough Bowl Rack

Table bench

In the dining room:

Buffet/Sideboard

 

And in the living room:



Shutters flanking the fireplace

Entertainment Center

Now I’ll take you down the hallway and we’ll stop in the hall bathroom:



Bathroom cabinet

And next is Luke’s little bedroom (our 4 year old):

Luke's bed

Luke's nightstand

And in the master bedroom:



Wall TV Cabinet

Now let’s turn around and go back into the living room and go upstairs. First at the top of the stairs, here’s the wonderful bookshelves for our many books. We love books! We homeschool.  We collect books! We love the motto: Wear the old coat, buy the new book. :)



bookshelves across entire wall of loft

And last of all into Joy’s room (our 13 year old):



Joy's desk and bulletin board

Maybe next time I’ll take you to my mom’s house so you can see what all Jason has made for her! After all, he does have to make his mother-in-law happy! Did I tell you he is her favorite son-in-law?  :)  Well, he's also her only son-in-law.  He’s made just about as many things for her as he has me!

Thanks for joining me today for a tour of my carpenter’s creations! I know I really am blessed and I know probably a little spoiled too. But I like being blessed (and spoiled). :)

Have a great weekend!  :)

Linking with Sunny Simple Sundays. 

♥ Tammy ♥

Faithful Friday - "Katlyn's Story"

Have you ever seen a mustard seed? It’s tiny! I found my bracelet that has a mustard seed just so you could see.

That's a mustard seed.  

"He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” 

  Matthew 17:20 (NIV)

Today’s story is a story of the faith of many praying people coming together for one girl. Her name is Katlyn. Katlyn (14) was involved in an ATV accident the end of May and has been in the hospital for months and only recently got out. Her story is a story of faith and God’s mercy and healing and honoring His Word. 

Katlyn’s parents and the entire community of Ellisville, MS came together in prayer believing and taking God at His Word. They WERE facing a mountain. Katlyn has faced mountains since she came out of her coma. She is a living miracle.

I don’t know Katlyn personally but I feel like I do. I do know Mindy, a long-time family friend of Katlyn’s family.  I met Mindy through my blog (she emailed me and introduced herself) and we have been online friends ever since and are now texting friends too. Mindy emailed me immediately after learning of the accident asking our family to stand together in prayer for Katlyn.   I’ve been keeping up with Katlyn through Mindy by text and email. I’ve just been so happy for Katlyn’s family and have been praising the Lord. I asked if I could share what God has done and Katlyn’s parents, Tasha and Trea, want everyone to know what God has done and that they give Him the glory!

This is Katlyn’s story.

That's Katlyn in the red shirt.

Here's what the article says:

From prayers to donations, Jones County banded together in support of a local teenager who was injured in an ATV accident in May.

Katlyn Graham was at a friend's house on May 30 when she was injured in an ATV accident.  She was trapped under the all-terrain vehicle until nearby utility workers got it off of her.  When they did, she was unresponsive.

"When I received the call that Katlyn and her friend had been in an accident on the (Polaris) Ranger, I thought broken leg, arm, etc." recalled Katlyn's mother, Tash Shoemake.  "After I got into my car and was headed to the scene, I called the friend's mother and she told me it was really bad but that was all she knew.  When I hung up the phone with her, I called my husband and my mom, then started praying that she would be OK." 

A neighbor performed CPRS and Katlyn was airlifted to a Jackson hospital, where she spent months recovering.

When Katlyn was admitted to University Medical Center, doctors performed a CT scan on her.  Katlyn couldn't talk, but she squeezed Shoemake's hand when asked.

"She kept trying to talk over the ventilator and I kept telling her not to try to talk, that she was going to be OK," Shoemake said.  "She kept shaking her head no."

Shortly after, doctors placed a drain in Katlyn's head as a precaution, in case her brain was to swell.  Shoemake said that doctors weren't originally concerned with Katlyn's lungs, just her brain.  However, the doctors noticed her lungs were no longer giving her body enough oxygen and the ventilators weren't helping.

"They wanted to put her on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation), but there are some high risks with a brain injury and ECMO," Shoemake said.  "She could have a massive brain bleed but her oxygen level at this point had gotten so low we have no choice....without ECMO, she might not have made it through the night."

The ECMO, which takes blood out of the body and oxygenates it, saved Katlyn's life.  After 15 days on the machine, she was back on the ventilator.

"Those 15 days, I still had peace that she was going to be OK," Shoemake said.  "I even asked the nurses if they thought she would be back playing soccer by October.  They thought it was possible."

When Katlyn was back on the ventilator, she had a feeding tube put in her stomach and was given a trache.  Katlyn battled neurostorming and withdrawals daily.

"It was so hard to watch," Sheomake said.  "On July 10, my mother's birthday, Katlyn was moved to the step-down unit, and four days later, we finally saw those eyes!  It was an amazing day!  All glory to God*"

Shoemake didn't expact that Katlyn would go through withdrawals from the medicine she was on or that she would toss and turn in her bed for hours with vomiting and sweats.

"The day finally came when therapists tried to sit her up in the bed," Shoemake said.  "She couldn't even hold her head up by herself."

Katlyn was eventually moved to the rehab floor, where she did exercises morning and night.

"The first day she took a few steps was a huge blessing, and the day I heard her voice for the first time was another mile-marker we had waited for," Shoemake said.

On Aug. 30, Katlyn returned home after a three-month stay in the hospital.  Graham went outside and chased a soccer ball for the first time since her accident on Sept. 11.

"Last week, we played around in the yard kicking the ball," Shoemake said.  "Her leg strength amazes me.  I thanked her soccer coach for all the running she made her do because I know having strong lungs was in her favor after the accident."

Katlyn played soccer at the Sportsplex at age 7 and has played ever since.  She hopes to return to the field next season.

Sheomake said God deserves the praise for her daughter's recovery.

"Physically, she has some motor skill and speech difficulties that will improve with rehab, mentally she is doing amazing and emotionally she is doing great!" Shoemake said.  "She has started homebound school (where a teacher visits her at home twice a week) and physical therapy and occupational therapy at Rehab at Work in Ellisville and speech therapy at the Wellness Center.  We are already seeing improvements daily!"

The community donated money, hosted fund-raisers, placed purple ribbons outside their businesses and painted their toenails purple for support and spent countless hours praying for the South Jones High School student.

Today, the teenager is a living miracle to her mother and family and to the community that cared so much for her when she needed it most.

Shoemake said Katlyn's many friends say they miss her smiling frace and "big mouth," which she is well known for because she loves to talk.  Sheomake has faith her daughter will receive complete healing.

"The power of prayer is amazing," Shoemake said.  "I believe that is why Katlyn is our miracle today.  No matter what you are faced with, always turn to God..  Keep your faith in him strong and stay tuned into him daily through prayer and reading your Bible."  


Katlyn's mom said it best........the power of prayer is amazing!  And God is not a respector of persons and He's the same yesterday, today, and forever!    :)

********************************************************

 

If you'd like to participate in Faithful Friday, you can link your post here on Joy's blog!  We'd love for you to join us!  It's so encouraging to hear other Christians share their faith! 

 

Thank you for stopping by today!  Be blessed!

 

♥ Tammy ♥    



♥ A Staircase Update ♥

We have progress on the staircase………slow progress, but progress nevertheless!

My carpenter (aka Jason) is a perfectionist and he’s pondered, planned, cut, recut, and redone posts and boards several times. I’m absolutely no help on figuring the measurements and the way things fit. I just know what looks good to me and I hold boards for him. I mean I’m the one that just hangs a picture by “eyeing it” and he finds studs, measures each side, top and bottom. So that tells you how much help I am on figuring out how all the pieces of the staircase fit together.  :)

But, I know when I like it and I like what’s starting to come together. The heighth of the posts will be cut down some from what you see in these pics and will also be sanded down so they aren’t quite as sharp and square, if that makes sense. The spindles will have 2” cut from the bottom so they won’t come that far down at the bottom.

And the thing that really gets me is that all of this that you see up right now is basically only up to make sure it all fits together properly. All of the staircase boards and posts will come down tonight, adjustments will be made to them, and then they will be stained. Then they all go back into place with all the other spindles added. Jason didn’t want to stain it all and risk messing up the finish trying to fit the pieces in, or wasting stain if it didn’t work out. And then there are still walls and doors to be finished as well in the foyer area and trim work to be done around all of it. And then there’s the one wall on the living room side that will have wallpaper removed and be painted red.

Here you can get an idea of how the treads and risers will look.  Jason temporarily put in a pair to show me how they will look together....the stained tread and the red riser.

I'm getting a wider staircase in this makeover too......5" wider actually.  When building our house, they made the stairs narrower than standard size it seems.  I always thought they seemed narrower than they should be.  I'm going to love that extra 5"!  

Yep, progress is slow but it IS getting there. I think there is a standing rule, or if there isn’t one established, there should be……..However long you think it will take to complete a home improvement project, plan on it probably taking twice that long. Now I will be happy if it’s all done by the end of October in time for Christmas decorating the first week of November.

Bless their hearts, my piano students are used to my house being a construction zone by now. I think they’re never surprised by what we have torn out and are working on!  :)

But, it will be worth it in the end. At least that what I keep telling myself!

***************************************************************

I enjoyed your comments yesterday. I’ve decided that if I’m a home stalker, ya’ll are too! Lol! And it really never occurred to me to drive around and look at homes at night so I could see inside the windows. I mean you ladies are serious about this!  But hey, I’ll have to try that!  I’ll say that you all made me feel much better.  I now know I'm not alone!  :)   And I’d LOVE to see homes in your area that you find charming! One more thing….Tammy of A Primitive Place said something that I didn’t even notice – all of the homes I showed had porches. I didn’t even consciously notice that when we got those pictures – guess I’m just naturally drawn to porches being a southern girl and all.

  Thanks for stopping by and have a great Thursday!  :)

♥ I Wonder if they Know? ♥

Do you know what all of these homes have in common?


These people are friends of ours.  I've been in this one!

Oh how I'd love to go inside this one!

 

Love the narrow farmhouse style!



See those posts.....they still have the twigs on them!

Love this lot too!



I've been in this one on a Christmas tour!

They have character. They’re charming. They have curb appeal. At least, to me they are all those things.

Yes, there are many styles represented here, but I think each one has character or charm.

They make me want to slow down to take a closer look and wonder if they’re just as charming inside.

Joy was my accomplice on this photo tour. She had the camera. I would slow down long enough for her to snap a picture through the opened window. I didn’t want people to think we were stalking them or staking out their house. She was willing to help out in this way but she established ahead of time that I wouldn’t be knocking on any doors asking folks if I could look inside. Lol!  I mean really, would she think I would do that?  :)

Here we go again…..please make me feel better and tell me that I’m not the only one that does this……I like to drive around (if I have waiting time as in waiting to pick Joy up or my mom from the doctor), and just admire and enjoy homes .

All of the above homes that you saw are in the general area that we drive on a regular basis and that have caught my eye for one reason or another. They stand out (to me anyway) as having character and charm. They look cozy and homey to me.

I wonder if they know?  :)

♥ Tammy ♥

♥ My Favorite Rooms ♥

Home is my favorite place to be, no doubt. I enjoy walking into a room and just admiring it, not that’s it luxurious or decked out for a magazine, but it just feels cozy and homey to me and that makes me happy! Do you ever do that….just walk into a room and look at things? Maybe not, maybe I’m a little strange....  :) 

Anyway, that got me to thinking…….which room would be my favorite if I had to choose a favorite room in my house? That’s a tough question and I’m not even sure I can say just one. I’m going to say it’s a tie between two because I really can’t choose between the two.

The kitchen is definitely one of them. We spend a lot of time here…….cooking, eating, homeschooling, and even just sitting at the table talking. This is where we plop down when my mom and dad come over. This is just a great hang out place. And since we gave the kitchen a makeover a few years ago, I really love it.

The other one is the living room. I had to say it was a tie here because I really love all the red…..red walls, the red checked couch, and all the Americana. And this is our other hang-out spot. And my piano is there. I like the way it opens to the stairway. Yep, this room makes me happy too (and especially so during the Christmas season, and this year hopefully I'll have my new staircase). 

So what about you? What’s your favorite room in your home? I’ll even say you can make it a tie between two. That’s only fair, right?  And I'd love to SEE them if you want to post about your favorite rooms! 

As always, I thank you very much for stopping by! Have a great day!  :)

Pinned it, Made it! Monday ~ Week 10 ~

Wow! I can’t believe this is the 10th week of Pinned it, Made it Monday! I’ve really enjoyed all the projects/ideas/tips that all of you ladies have been linking to the party. I always look forward to what you’re up to next!

This week I have a couple of things to share with you. The first one is a recipe. I pinned this awhile back because as I’ve mentioned many times, I love anything with a Mexican flare when it comes to food. I made this for supper Saturday night and we finished it off for lunch after church today.

The original pin (above) came from greensnchocolate.


Southwestern Chopped Chicken Salad
recipe adapted from Lauren's Latest
serves 4 for dinner salads

salad:
2 cups shredded chicken
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can sweet yellow corn (or 1 cup frozen corn, thawed)
2 roma tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, sliced
1 head ice berg lettuce, washed and chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 ripe avocados, diced
1 cup crushed tortilla chips

dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2/3 cup Greek yogurt
1 tbsp ranch seasoning
1 tbsp taco seasoning

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine all salad ingredients together, excluding the tortilla chips.

In a small bowl stir all dressing ingredients together. Pour dressing over salad, starting with about half of the dressing. Toss to combine, then gradually add more dressing until it is dressed to your liking. Top with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!


Here's mine......

I left the crushed tortillas on the table to add individually:

** Note from Tammy ** I forgot to pick up ranch seasoning when I went to the grocery store, so I substituted ½ cup of ranch dressing. I also left off the avocados. I meant to add a touch of lime juice which I think would just make it all the better, and I forgot. This recipe was delicious! I will definitely be making it again! And it made a LARGE bowl! I just added garlic bread sticks. Loved it!

The second thing I want to share with you is an organization tip.  The original pin (below) came from Life as a Thrifter.

We come in and out our back door which is in the kitchen. All of our shoes end up on the little brick platform beside my cookstove. I’ve tried many things to keep them organized and I like this better than anything I’ve had.

It pleases me decorating wise and it works well for everyone to drop their shoes in. I’m trying to train everyone to put them neatly as you see here, but that doesn’t always happen. …ahem….Luke. But even so, I still like this organization method of keeping our shoes. And I LOVE crates, so this makes me happy!

Well there are two girls in the house with lots of flip flops.  Luke's shoes are in there in the corner!  :) 

Now I’d love to see what you’ve been up to!  Have you followed through with something you’ve pinned on Pinterest? This is your personal invitation to join me today and share your project/idea/tip!

To participate in Pinned it, Made it! Monday, here are the guidelines:

1) Just do a post about what you’ve pinned and made from Pinterest, then come back over here to Country Girl at Home and link that particular post (not your blog in general) on this post below.

2) I don’t mind if you link up more than one post….multiple entries are fine.

3) You must add my Pinned it, Made it! Monday button on your post or sidebar of your blog linking back to Country Girl at Home. You may get this button code on the page at the top of my blog labeled “Buttons”. Just copy and paste the code into your post.

4) Be supportive and visit blog entries. I do ask that you visit at least one and leave a comment there. And don't forget to leave me one here! :) We all love comments, don’t we? It’s encouraging and uplifting!

5) By linking up and participating, you give me permission to use your entry photo if I decide to feature an entry. Just grab the button code for your blog linking back to Country Girl at Home.

*********************************************

Thank you for stopping by today!  I invite you to follow me here on Country Girl at Home as well as Pinterest (you can find the link to my Pinterest on the sidebar).  I appreciate all my followers (I really prefer to call them faithful friends), and your comments!

Have a great week!  :) 

♥ Simply Amish ♥

I was the lucky (or I prefer to say blessed) winner of Michelle’s giveaway (of Simple Pleasures)…….genuine Amish children’s clothing purchased from an Indiana Amish community. (Thank you Michelle!). I just love them!

I love and admire the Amish’s simple lifestyle and also recently read A Day in the Life of the Amish, so I was especially excited to be the winner of her wonderful giveaway.   It meant all the more! 

The dress and overalls came in the mail Friday. They are simple, but I think they're beautiful!

I just may be trying these on my 2 year old niece when we go to Alabama in a few weeks!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!   :)

Linking with Elaine of Sunny Simple Sundays.

Faithful Friday - "Walking Across Egypt"

Good morning! I find myself looking forward to Fridays more and more. Of course, it’s partly because the weekend is coming but it’s also because I love sharing a post for Faithful Friday.


I’ve mentioned before that we don’t really watch TV around here (since we don’t have cable or anything), other than Netflix and DVDs of our choice to watch. So, it’s always great to come across a good family film. I always appreciate when others share their family movie finds with me, so I thought I’d share with you today. After all, what we watch or what goes into our minds, is eventually going to come out in some way. I want that to be good things.  :)

We’ve actually had this movie a long time because it’s on VHS.   That means I bought it before DVDs were becoming popular.  We’ve bought movies through Feature Films for Families for years now and this was one of them. We pulled it out the other night and watched it and I remembered just how much I liked it back then and I felt the same way watching it the other night. It’s called Walking Across Egypt.

Ellen Burstyn stars in this warm family drama. Mattie (Burstyn) is an aging southern belle who realizes that she's getting too old to go on living in a house. After an odd encounter with the local dogcatcher Lamar (Mark Hamill), Mattie befriends Lamar's bad-egg nephew, Wesley (Jonathan Taylor Thomas). Soon he betrays her trust and escapes from juvenile detention.


I love Ellen Burstyn’s character in this movie and the juvenile delinquent is played by Jonathan Taylor Thomas, who also does a great job. Ellen’s son is played by Judge Reinhold, another familiar face. This movie is rated PG-13 and I really was not sure why. I think it must be because it’s dealing with a juvenile delinquent.

Mattie (Ellen Burstyn) takes the preacher’s sermon to heart that she hears in church on Sunday when he reads and preaches on the Bible Scripture about “taking care of the least of these”.

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’"

~ Matthew 25:31-45 ~

 

Mattie (Ellen Burstyn) has a soft heart, but yet she’s spunky and she teaches the boy a few lessons. If you’re looking for a heart-warming family movie with a Christian undertone, I think you’ll like this movie.  :)

*********************************************************************************************************

Thank you for dropping by today for Faithful Friday. Joy and I invite you to join us with a Faithful Friday post. You can link up on her blog here. I know Joy would love if you stop by for a visit today.  Her Faithful Friday post is about receiving her purity ring.

Have a wonderful weekend!  :)

Blessings!

♥ Tammy ♥