First Baptismal Service at VSIBC

What a special Baptismal Service we had a few weeks ago at VSIBC.  There were 3 people wanting to be baptized!  Praise God!

The first was James.  He and his sweet family have been coming to VSIBC so faithfully.  They have become such dear friends to our whole family.  We are so thankful for them!

There was a lot of excitement from the members of our church!  Patrick chose to have the baptism in the Santa Fe river.  It was a beautiful spot!   

The next was my Silas!  Yay!  This guy has been wanting to be baptized for quite a while.  There was such joy on his face the entire time!  

And the last was my Callie Grace.  She was so happy to be baptized!  The water was quite cold.  It was cute to hear her squeal as she got in! :o)

 Can you tell she's cold?

 I think this picture is so precious.  Look at the joy on both of their faces!

 We were so happy that my Mom, Dad, my sister Taylin and her two kiddos Logan and Chloe came to see the baptisms.  They arrived late Saturday night and left right after the service on Sunday.  Quick trip!  But, so worth it!  It meant so much to us! And especially to my Silas and Callie.

What a great day in the life of our family!  And a joyous, victorious day in the life of our church, Victory Springs Independent Baptist Church!

Deer in the Freezer!

My boys are loving living in the woods!  They have been scoping out the best spots and have been looking forward to opening day of deer season.  My Patrick was excited to be able to put some Venison in the freezer!

  I made the only recipe that I've ever made with deer meat.  It had been about 10 years since I made it last, so I was wondering if we would still like it.  My 3 little ones were so excited to be eating "Daddy's Deer."  When they tasted it, they loved it!  Micah said, "It is so juicy!"  They even asked for more the next day!

 So, I figured I would share the recipe I made, given to me by Mrs. Pat Brown!  (Thanks Mrs. Brown, you're a blessing!) This is so easy!
Here's what you do:
Put the big chunk of deer that your mighty-hunter-husband brought home in a pot on the stove with about 3 teaspoons of oil.  (I seasoned my first with Badia all-purpose seasoning)  Let it sear very well, then transfer to the crockpot.  Mix 2 cans of cream soup (I used Cream of Mushroom and Cream of Chicken) and 2 Beef Bouillon Cubes that have been dissolved in one cup of warm water.   Pour over meat in crockpot and cook a LONG time.  (I did mine about 8 hours)  I serve the meat and gravy over rice.  Sooo yummy!

Beth's plan is to make some deer burgers.  I also made some small deer steaks.  There is plenty of meat left, anyone have some recipes to share?

16 and 17

16 & 17.  These are the ages of my older 2 girls.  While they are in no way "boy crazy" or dying to get out of the house, they are naturally thinking towards the home that God will let them one day have.  They want to be ready and do their best for the Lord when that day comes.  

Several months ago, one of their dear friends talked about having a hope chest and wanting to fill it with things for her future home.  I'm so thankful for Godly friends in my girls life!   So, Beth and Brenna began talking about wanting a hope chest as well.  Patrick and I thought it was a great idea! 

 After lots of looking and hunting in thrift stores and yard sales, we just couldn't find one in their price range.  Then, Patrick came across one at a thrift shop and brought it home.  It was quite small, but Brenna loved it!  So, she has her rustic, very adorable, wooden hope chest.  Beth had not quite found the one that would suit her.... until we found a great sale at the Airport last weekend.  My Beth found a quite large, Lane Hope Chest.  Exactly what she wanted!  Exactly!

 She cleaned it up, found a place in her room (that was a miracle!) and carefully put in her China that was given to her by a dear missionary friend.

I love to watch God grant the desires of my children's hearts.  Of course, in our minds, these hope chests will be here, in our home, at the foot of our girl's beds, for years to come.  But, I know the future comes all too soon.  I'm thankful their heart is sincere in their desire to prepare for the future.  I just hope I'm ready when that time comes.

Pumpkin Whip Dip

I have such a yummy treat to share with you today!!  When we made our list of Fall-to-do's, my girls wanted to try and make a Pumpkin Dip recipe that they found.  Of course!  So, one night, while at the grocery store, we decided to buy what we needed.  The only problem?  We didn't have the recipe with us.  So, we bought what we thought was in it.  Another problem?  We were wrong.  We were missing 2 of the main ingredients.  Oops.  So, we decided to come up with our own dip and it was a hit!  Josh took a bite and said, "Wow!  This is amazing!"  It's now on our list for Fall's forever!  So, I introduce to you:  Pumpkin Whip Dip, created by the Gimenez girls! :o)

Pumpkin Whip Dip

Mix together
 8oz. of softened cream cheese
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
 1 teaspoon vanilla
 15 oz can of pumpkin 
1 cup of brown sugar.

 Mix well, then gently fold in 1 tub of Cool-Whip.  Chill well, then serve with Graham Crackers and Vanilla Wafers.  I'm sure it would be yummy with Apples and Grapes, too!

Hope you enjoy!

Fall in North Florida

 I've seen so many beautiful pictures of colorful leaves fall up north.  Fall is so gorgeous!  But, as I look around here in North Florida, we have our own version of Fall, and it's just as beautiful!

You may see some trees with leaves starting to turn, but not too many.  For now, we have lots of beautiful green mixed with the pretty tannish/gray Spanish Moss hanging from our trees.

 Temperatures finally started to cool-off last week and we have highs in the upper 70s and lower 80s.  Absolutely wonderful!  In the evenings there is a chill in the air that makes for perfect, romantic, fireplace weather!

 The deer aren't appearing quite as much because they know it's Deer Season!  But, we have an occasional spotting in our backyard.  In town you will see many men in their Camo coming from a morning in the woods.

 Our woodpile is growing as Patrick and Josh have been doing plenty of chopping!
And we often look through the woods to see if we see the orange vest of our hunting guys!

 We don't have orange on our leaves, but there is lots of beautiful orangy/rust pine needles falling. It is so beautiful!

And around our place this guy enjoys digging holes, barking at the Hawks and warning us everytime a car passes....especially the school bus!

What a beautiful place that God has called us to live!!

Winter Garden? We'll see!

 A few weeks ago we went to our library and they were giving out free seeds for winter gardens.  Winter gardens?  I didn't know there was such a thing!   Having my little ones in mind, I decided that "We" would try it together.

 So, we planted inside little cups the Cauliflower, Broccoli and Snow Peas.  We faithfully watered them everyday, then watched the little green sprouts come through the soil.  It was fun!

 Then came the day to get our spot ready.  Patrick had already tilled up the garden, so it wasn't too hard.  I read a book about wider garden beds, so we are trying that approach.
As I was preparing our rows, I started sweating.  It has been hot here in North Central Florida!  We've almost hit a few record breakers for this unseasonable heat!  I thought it was funny that I was sweating on my winter garden!

 We decided to keep our snow peas inside a little longer since they aren't supposed to tolerate anything above 80*.  We added bunching onion and carrots to our seedlings.

And Voila!  Our garden is planted!  We'll see how it goes!

Momma, Can you make a spot for me?

It had been a busy day (there are many of those lately!)  Dinner was done, dishes were finished, we were starting to end our day.  Before I began putting my little ones to bed, I sat down for a little break on the love seat.  After a deep breath, I felt a little guys presence next to me, "Momma, can you make a spot for me?"  I looked at this growing up 3 year old, chocolate milk in one hand, tattered white blanket in the other.  How could I refuse?

I scooted over and enjoyed some moments simply enjoying my baby boy's presence.  I smelled his hair.  Rubbed his still-baby-soft arm.  I sat there in awe of the joy to be his Momma. I just enjoyed "making a spot" for him.

And then I felt the Holy Spirit ask, "What about me?  Have you made a spot for me lately?"  Have I? Have I tried lately to count the innumerable attributes of the one who loves me more than anyone else?  Have I just enjoyed His presence?  Have I just sat there in awe of being a child of God?  Have I made a spot for Him lately?

Psalm 119:161  "My heart standeth in awe"

Every Day

I read a great article the other day by Cindie Trieber.  One of the things she said caused me to stop and think.  She said:

Teach your children something from God's Word everyday

Am I really doing that?  Sure, they are being raised in a Christian Home with parents that are trying to live right.  We fill our home with Godly music, they are getting a great Christian education through A beka Live Streaming and hearing about God through all of their subjects....but what about from me?  Are they hearing it from me?  

I was really convicted to step it up in this area and make sure that I teach my children something from God's Word everyday.  It's amazing how when you make a decision like that, God will help you to keep it!  

 Like when we saw the neatest grasshopper on our front porch. It jumped so high, was so green, but the coolest thing was how it looked exactly like a leaf!!  I was able to share with my little blessings about how wise God was when He made the grasshopper and how He made Him to look just like a leaf so the little grasshopper can be protected.

God's World is so amazing and real and I'm loving sharing it with my family!

True Love

True Love isn't found in the big moments.  It's found in everyday life.  Living with one another and showing love in the little things....that's what makes a home filled with Love.

11-01-14

 I was glancing through my photos on the computer and looked at this picture.....

...it was taken exactly one year ago, today (November 1, 2014)

Wow, What a time!  We were packing up, saying our good-byes, thinking about the renvoations to our new home ahead, dreaming of starting a church in High Springs....it was a great time, yet a little stressful, too.  The girls and I were talking this morning about stability and how a Momma seems to thrive in an atmosphere of stability.  Moving isn't necessarily one of those times.  It's more a time of being flexible.  A time of contemplating if an item is really worth boxing up.  A time of sadness as you say good-bye yet a time of excitement looking ahead.

I can truly say that I am enjoying this time of a little more "stability."  I love having my home set up. (somewhat.  A home is never really done!) I'm loving organizing and trying to make things more efficient.  I'm loving having a schedule.  (we have a basic schedule, but flexibility is still such a must in the ministry!)  I guess I just really love this season of my life!

And this next picture has nothing to do with this post, except it was in the same folder as the above folder.  It was too cute not to post!