Chatting with Charity ~ 37

Are you like me and in awe that Christmas Day is almost here? And don't even getting me started about this weather!!! Even though the days leading up to now seem to have flown by, I am ready. I am excited to celebrate the birth of Christ and sit and ponder the gift that He freely gives! A gift that do NOT deserve and that I desperately want others to receive. It is really the only gift that matters! While we celebrate this year we will be eating lot...s, FAR TOO MANY, treats. One of those will be Peanut Butter Bars. If you are looking for a quick and easy treat to whip up, this is a great one!

Ingredients

1/2 cup salted butter, 1 stick
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs, 1 pack
1 cup peanut butter
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

Cut butter into chunks and melt.
Stir in the next three ingredients. Stir until all of the ingredients are well mixed.
Line a 9 x 13 inch dish with foil. Spray lightly with oil.
Press the mixture into the dish.
Melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips and spread the chocolate over the peanut butter mix. Cut and refrigerate until set.

 

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 36

Are you looking for the perfect gift for that hard to buy for person?
I have found a great one! It is called a Journible and I love them! It is a Journal that is designed for you to write books of the Bible in, verse by verse, and plenty of room for you to respond and add notes to the verses. I can NOT say enough good things about them!!! Study's prove that writing out things helps us to remember and what is more important than the word of God to rem...ember! I write big and was worried that there wouldn't be enough room but I was wrong! There is plenty of room! Plus, can you imagine if you had a book of the Bible written in your grandmother's handwriting what a treasure it would be!!! Well, guess what one day we might have grandkids that feel the same way!

There are many different Journibles to pick from. I found mine on Amazon.

I hope that this helps you mark a gift off your list or maybe just inspires you to get one for yourself!

What are your favorite gifts this season for the hard to buy for person?

 

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 35

Good afternoon! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Speaking of Thanksgiving, do you still have turkey hanging around that you are ready to be rid of?
...

I have the perfect quick and easy dinner to help you use up that leftover turkey.

Creamy Turkey and Spinach Soup

1 large pack of frozen cheese tortellini
1 (14oz) can chicken broth
2 (10 3/4oz) cans of cream of chicken
1/2 bag of fresh spinach
2 cups chopped, cooked turkey
2 cups milk
1/2 t. Italian seasoning
1/4 t. pepper

Cook tortellini according to package, using 1 can of broth instead of water. Add all remaining ingredients and stir well. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low, cook 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 34

It is almost here, my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving!!!!  I have always loved Thanksgiving best because it is the holiday that lets you be thankful for all that other holidays represent.  I have much cooking and cleaning to do today as I prepare for a house full of family and friends but I wanted to share our favorite Thanksgiving drink.  We call it Fall Drink around here but I thought I would come up with a little better name for it, in case you decide to serve it this year and need to tell people what it is ;-)  So, are you ready for the easiest and tastiest drink ever?
Thanksgiving Punch
- equal parts cranberry juice and ginger
   ale
-  serve with lime wedges
See, I told you it was the easiest!!!  It compliments Thanksgiving dinner well!
What is your favorite thing serve at Thanksgiving dinner?
Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you have a wonderful day and enjoy family, friends, and food!  If by chance you have no one to celebrate with send me a message and you are more than welcome at our table!
Psalm 107:1-2 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His loving kindness is everlasting. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary

Charity

CHatting with Charity ~ 33

Good morning!!!! Can you believe that we are already in the middle of November?!? Christmas will be here before we know it.  Today, I wanted to share with you something we did with our girls a few years ago.  When my girls were little I would set out to find the perfect advent to do with them during the Christmas season, I never found anything that was just perfect for us.  It seemed that every study I would find would not fit their ages or require too much prep work for the already too busy season or was more about the girls getting some little gift everyday than about preparing our hearts for the celebration of Christ first coming and His second coming.  So...I came up with my own idea! 
Names of God Advent
It was very simple! I gathered a small table top Christmas tree, some cute ball ornaments, and a paint pen.  Each day we would study a name of God or an attribute of God.  After our study we would write the name/attribute on one of the ornaments and hang it on the tree.  How better to prepare our hearts for His coming than to spend time studying who He is.  Now those ornaments are displayed in a glass dish and I love bringing them out year after year and going over His names.  It has become a favorite tradition.
What is your favorite advent study or tradition?

Charity

CHatting with Charity ~ 32

Today, I have one last tip for preparing your freezer meals...label it well!  I always put what the meal is and cooking directions on the outside.  This will help you know what you have but also allows anyone to be able to make dinner on a busy day.  Plus, you could easily pass one it to a friend who needs a easy dinner. 
One last thing while we are talking about freezer meals, I thought I would share one of my families favorites!
Spinach And Chicken Stuffed Shells
24 jumbo pasta shells
1 15-oz. container ricotta
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 cup cooked chopped chicken
10 leaves fresh basil, chopped
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Salt and pepper
1 26-oz. jar spaghetti sauce

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Cook pasta shells according to package label directions; drain and set aside to cool. While pasta cooks, in a large bowl, stir together ricotta, spinach, chicken, basil, egg, salt, pepper.
2. Spread 3/4 cup spaghetti sauce over bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Stuff shells with cheese mixture and place in dish. Spoon remaining sauce over shells and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella.
3. Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake about 10 minutes longer, until bubbly and cheese begins to brown.
I normally triple this recipe when I make it and it makes enough for 4 meals. One for that night's dinner and three to tuck in the freezer for later.

Charity

CHatting with Charity ~ 31

Good Morning!  So how many of you have made your tried and true recipe list and planned out your month on a calendar?  I hope you have and that it is helping to make dinner time a little more simple!  If not, don't fear, you can do it!  You just need to take the first small step! I hope today's tip is as life changing ;-) for you as it was for me! 
One year our family had the GREAT pleasure of spending almost a month in a travel trailer.  We spent a week and a half in the mountains came home for a week and then spent a week and a half at the beach, it was wonderful.  Before both trips I had premade and froze as much food as possible for our family to help keep us from eating out and so that we did not get sick of hot dogs and hamburgers!  It was a wonderful three weeks with very little cooking by me but plenty of home cooked meals.  One night towards the end I realized how easy it had made life and wondered why I hadn't been doing this at home.  Well, let me tell you, I did start doing it at home and it did make my life easier.  Did you know you can make ahead and freeze almost anything?  If they sell it in the frozen food section at the grocery store, you can make it ahead and freeze it yourself!
Here are a few tips to keep in mind
1. Stock up on freezer bags and disposable pans
2.  Always make double of what you are cooking and freeze the extra
3.  Most soups freeze wonderfully if you leave the noodles out.  Just add them when you are heating it to serve
4.  Lots of pasta dishes can be frozen before you bake, such as homemade macaroni and cheese and lasagna
5.  Homemade baked good freeze well
Just this week we have used two freezer meals.  The first was spaghetti sauce with Italian sausage, all I had to do was heat it up while I cooked the pasta.  The second was chicken enchiladas, I let them thaw, baked them, made a quick sauce, and dinner was served.  It made a crazy week feel a little more normal because we were still having a normal dinner routine. 
 Colossians 3:17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
Are freezer meals a normal part of your dinner routine?

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 30

 

 

Good Morning!! I hope you have your list of tried and true family recipes and are ready for the next step in menu planning!  Did you find any recipes that you had gotten about?  Any that you have never tried?  How about ones that you know you will never make again?  It is amazing how many recipes I collect that just do not work for our family! 
Okay, are you ready? 
Step 2
-Grab you recipe list and a calendar, you can use the one on your phone or paper.
-Look over your month and mark any days that you know you will be eating out. **feel free to do this for a week if a month is too overwhelming for you.  It will get easier over time.  I promise!**
-Now, find your busiest nights during the month.  Look over your recipe list and find your easiest/fastest meals and write them on those busy days.  Remember, breakfast foods make a fast dinner!
-Next find any special occasions you have for the month and pick out the perfect recipe to celebrate with....unless those are the nights you are eating out󾍇.
-Finally, look over your recipe list and start filling in the rest of the month.  Keep in mind your budget and don't put all your expensive recipes in one week.  Also, spread out types of food.  An example would be don't put two pasta or chicken recipes beside each other.
-If you enjoy cooking and trying new recipes give yourself a day or two during the month to do that!  Make sure it is a day where you will not feel rushed and you can enjoy the art of cooking!
The great news is once you have done a month's worth of planning you can look back to it month after month!!!! This is how I keep us from getting bored with or burned out from eating the same 5 things over and over!  Also, it just makes life easy when I don't want to think about what's for dinner. 
-Now, email yourself a copy of the calendar so you can view it from anywhere!
*I have a summer month plan and a winter month plan.  That way we aren't eating chili and potato soup all summer!
Colossians 3:17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
Have you ever tried to menu plan for a month?

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 27

 

 

 Good Morning! Who is enjoying this fall weather...in September? I sure am!!!

This morning I want to share a free printable that I made. It is of one of my FAVORITE poems, The Refiner's Fire. It goes along with one of my favorite Bible verses Proverbs 17:3 The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord test hearts. We often want to thank God for... the good times in life but we do not have to be around for long before we feel the heat of the fire. I may not enjoy the fire but I love my God and I trust that He has a bigger vision for my life than I do and that brings me GREAT peace. He will not leave me in the fire a bit more than is needed to make me pure.

You can print this off, trim it up, and pop it in a frame as a great reminder that God is purifying you because you have great value!

I would love to see the printable in your home. If you use it, snap a picture and share it in the comments. I will share mine once the sun comes up and I can see to get a picture;-)

Charity

Chatting with Charity 29

 

Good Morning! I am up early and sitting outside enjoying being cold for the first time this fall! Don't worry, I have a blanket and hot coffee! I am about to write out my menu and grocery list for the week and that has me thinking... One of the biggest frustrations I hear from women is what to do for dinner. I understand this frustration. I love to cook when I have unlimited time but I don't always love coming up with a menu or the rush of dinner h...as to be made in 30 minutes so we can make it to church on time.

I am going to spend the next few week sharing some tips that have made weeknight dinners easier for me.

Step 1
Sit down and write out every tried and true dinner that you make. This could be anything from Eggplant Parmesan to Eggs and Toast. Remember to include premade things that you pick up at the store, one of these for our family is Publix's fried chicken. Try to include at least 20 recipes. Then email this list to yourself. Having the list in email form will allow you to work on grocery list from anywhere, even the grocery store. I am not saying I have ever done that, ha! Also, include the ingredient list in the email of any hard to remember recipes.

Colossians 3:17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

What are some of your tried and true recipes?

Chatting with Charity ~ 28

 

 

Good Morning! I hope you are finding a way to stay dry this VERY wet week!

I woke up this morning with our vacation from last week on my mind. More specifically a dinner from last week. If you know me in real life, you know that I ♥ Mexican food. If you ask me what I want to eat 9 times out of 10 I will say Mexican. We had researched restaurants in the area we were staying and found one with great reviews. We arrived hungry and excited. When we walked in we realized -quickly- that this was an authentic Mexican restaurant and we were the only ones who spoke English. We were seated and our waitress switched with another who could understand us. None of us can speak Spanish. Needless to say, we stood out. As I was sitting there taking in the festive atmosphere and decor I began to notice all the beautiful dark and shiny hair that surrounded me. That is when it hit me not only did we stand out but I STOOD OUT EVEN MORE. You see I have the exact opposite of dark and shiny hair...my hair is blond and frizzy! Then I realized that I was the only one with glowing pale skin. Trust me, no one else cared about this it was just me people watching. I sat there thinking that this would be a funny story to tell later, you know the time the pale, frizzy haired blond came in and tried to order without knowing a word of Spanish. That is when God started speaking to my heart. I started to wonder...do I as a Christian add light and stand out this much in the darkness of the world around me or do I just blend in. I sat in that hard Formica covered seat and felt conviction of some places in my life where I am not being the light, where I am not living my life as a holy sacrifice. Too often, I live my life for me and my selfish desires. I confessed a few things in that moment and enjoy my favorite food. I left that restaurant with more than a full belly, I left with a full heart that had been encouraged by God to continue to live a life that stands out to bring Him glory. I want the things I do and the words I say to be in GREAT contrast to what the world does and says. I want to look different because I am different, I am different because of the cross and I want that to be what each and every person who meets me sees!

There are many people that I have come into contact with through the years who have shown this light to me and all those around them. I am thankful for these people! This morning I want this post to be in honor of three such people who have finished their work here on earth and gone on to be with Jesus. Mrs. Ingrid Brown, Mrs. Jana Disney, and Mr. Patrick Price you all served your God, your family, your church, and the world well! Thank you for being the light!

Who do you know that is a shining light for Jesus in this world? Have you told them? Finally, are you being the light that this dark world needs?

 

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 26

 

 

I have been think about these verses in

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your ho...use and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

These verses encourage me to spend more time teaching my kids the word of God! I want to be diligent in this! I want my kids to know God and His word. I want them to be able to trust that when times of trouble come that they have His word hidden in them!

Today, I want to encourage you to take the time to share God's word with your kids or someone else's kids. His word never comes back void!

In this picture I simply shared that we can trust God for our strength. We read lots of verses about God being the source of our strength. This is a great time to teach them to use a concordance! Then we made a cute piece of art to be a reminder (Here I raise my Ebenezer) of the goodness of God and of our lesson!

How are you teaching your kids the word of God?

 

Charity

Chatting with Charity ~ 25

 

 

Happy September! Fall is my favorite season and it sends me into the kitchen with new excitement every single year! I love to bulk cook, bake, and start slow cooker meals in the morning and have the house smell yummy all day! I also find that this is a great time for me to love on others! A batch of homemade soup is easy to double and share with someone who could use a little encouragement. And let's face it we all have days that we could use a little encouragement! Today, I am going to share one of my family's favorite that also happens to be super easy and cooked in the slow cooker...the best of everything!

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 chicken breast rinsed
2 cans of corn, do not drain
2 cans of black beans, drained
2 cans of chicken broth
2 cans of stewed tomatoes
1 block of cream cheese
1 pack of dry taco seasoning
1 pack of dry Ranch dressing
3 cups of rice cooked

Put all but rice in the slow cooker, cook on low for 6-8 hours, shred chicken with a fork, add cooked rice, mix, serve with cheese and sour cream and some YUMMY bread. Enjoy!

This makes enough for our family of 4 to share. If you are just cooking for your family cut everything in half.

Have you ever surprised someone with dinner?

 

Charity