One of my obsessions

SHARPIES!!! I have an unusual and maybe abnormal love for Sharpies! I don't know exactly when it started but it was a couple of years ago. We couldn't get Sharpies here in South Africa until last year sometime which only added to my obsession. You know when you can't get something (Peanut Butter M&Ms, Starburst, good stickers, Sonic Route 44 Diet Coke with crunchy ice, Chick-fil-A), but who's counting? When you can't get something, it only adds to the obsession. When you rely on people coming to SA or your yearly Christmas stocking stuffer to get your Sharpies, your heart pounds when one begins to loose it's color or you can't find the color in the plethora of Sharpies or you're convinced that your children are hiding them from you.

Now, David just asked me (appallingly I might add) if I was blogging about Sharpies. And what that had to do with anything. Grace and I both answered, "Everything." (She's well trained). And I could try and bring something spiritual into this (because isn't that what missionaries are suppose to do?), but I won't. I just wanted to share my love of Sharpies and all other things listed that you can't get here in South Africa that I may or may not obsess about.

Thanks for listening to the rant.

Up next Monday....another missionary monday

New Addition

 J-Life Africa would like to announce the latest arrival! Kiandra is the newest addition to Chico and Gloria. Chico is the country leader of Mozambique. This is their first baby. Congratulations!!

May the Lord bless you and keep you!

Sewing

I sew, but only things that require straight lines. My mom made us take sewing lessons one year and it kinda stuck with me. So curtains, blankets, bedding. etc...those are the things I am good at.
This is a blanket I made for myself. It's a throw size. It's 2 layers of fleece so it's extra warm on my feet. The winter here in South Africa is quite cold. I know that comes as a surprise to some of you, but we are quite far from the equator so we get all four seasons. It would be better if our houses were equipped for winter with central heat, but it's only cold for about 12 weeks so I would rather have central air, if we were given a choice, but people don't put central air in their homes here, so when it's hot outside, it is hot inside and when it's cold outside, it's cold inside. Just the way it is. But anyway, this post was not about the weather. It's about sewing. Last week, I sewed a "Cars" comforter for our friend's little boy. I am not the best seamstress in the world, but am so glad my mom made me take lessons. I think everyone should know how to sew, at least a little. So, I am teaching Grace on the machine and Matthew knows how to sew a button and we even attempted to darn a sock the other day. I was feeling like a real Martha Stewart :). Sewing has come in super handy being a missionary and either helping someone by making a blanket or curtains or tablecloths or just being able to make curtains for my house. Love being able to minister in a maybe non-traditional way, but sharing God's love through sewing.

Mother's Day

Well,  I couldn't let Mother's Day go by without a post. I am just having a hard time starting...I don't know why exactly. My thoughts are everywhere. From my mom, me becoming a mom, what a mom looks like...so maybe these are some of the things for today's blog.

Some things I have learned from my mom:
1. Love the Lord first
2. Be a lifelong learner
3. Hunt for a bargain
4. Enjoy the moment
5. Family is important
6. Love a good roller coaster
7. Diet Coke is the best
8. Work Hard
9. Expect excellence
10. Help others
11. Serve
12. Sleep is valued

These are just a few of the things I could think of off the top of my head. There is so much about my mom that I love. I hate being far away from her, but we know the Lord has a plan and being far away doesn't change love.

Becoming a mom:
Some of you may or may not know that I became a mom to Andrew when David and I got married almost 20 years ago. Andrew was 12 and I had no idea what to do. I loved him and that was what guided me. You see, I have all sisters, no brothers. There were no boys in our house growing up. We even had girl dogs. Now, yes Andrew has his real mom, Tracy and I love her and am so thankful that she shared Andrew with me.I am grateful to Andrew for the grace he gave to me in me learning.  Then along came Matthew and Grace. I love being a mom to all of them. Now, I have Elizabeth, my daughter in law. I've learned a lot in the last 20 years. Not every kid is the same. They all are made differently and you have to find ways to connect with each one. I love being a mom. That's what I always wanted to be. Yes, I have other titles in life, but mom is my favorite.

Southern breakfast

I am the first to admit that my cooking skills have greatly improved since moving to South Africa almost 8 years ago. I think before I just was a heat and serve girl. You know what I am talking about...you get frozen food and heat and serve and call it cooking. I was needless to say shocked my first month here in South Africa at many things, but one of the most shocking was that everything was cooked from scratch. There were no pop in the oven meals and serve as dinner. SO, I invested in a cookbook until mine arrived in our shipment. I brought with me 3 cookbooks. My all time favorite, Betty Crocker. This book is for anyone. It explains, with pictures, what to do. Our church cookbook and a Denton County Women's Society Cookbook. Can't go wrong with little old ladies' recipes.

I also be the first to admit, I am not a foodie blogger. So my pictures are not the greatest. My friend, Shay Lowe-Shull at MixandMatchMama has the greatest pictures to go along with her great recipes. She is a definite meal planner that I follow and has great food that kids will eat! She has 2 new cookbooks out, Mix and Match Meal Planner and Mix and Match Cakes, that I am dying to get when we are home in December.  

Anyway, back to the topic of Southern Breakfast. We have had off a few days of school and I thought one morning I would make homemade southern biscuits (from scratch) and Chocolate gravy. Which in my book if you can incorporate chocolate into any meal that is a win in my book! The recipe for the biscuits is in the Betty Crocker cookbook and the Chocolate Gravy recipe is from my daughter-in-law, Elizabeth. See below for the recipe. They were so scrumptious and just the treat to have on a day off. Super easy to make and you can't mess them up. 

Chocolate Gravy

1/4cup Sugar

3 Tbsp Cocoa Powder

2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour

1 cup Milk

1 Tbsp Butter

Melt butter in sauce pan. Add flour and stir until smooth. Add sugar, cocoa, and milk. Stir until thick.

Missionary Monday 6

This is Palgrave. He is the country leader in Ghana, Ghana is in West Africa. This is his family. His wife Irene and children, Ruth-Janelle and Steve. I believe Palgrave went through the J-Life training in 2007. So, he has been around longer than we have. He has a great team around him to help him in the disciple making movement in Ghana. This year, Palgrave has been instrumental in growing disciples outside of Ghana. He has helped Nelson from Sierra Leone come to J-Life and continues to meet with him now that they are both back in west Africa. 

• Pray for Palgrave and Irene and their children, That the Lord would grant them wisdom to raise their beautiful children and to make time for their marriage.
• Pray for Ghana as they continue to grow the work being done there
• Pray for the outreach past Ghana's borders that is happening. 
• Pray for Palgrave as he continues to help Nelson through his first year in J-Life.