Chocolate Cream Pie

Chocolate Cream Pie
From Taste of Home - These guys have GREAT recipes! 

DEE-licious, I say!! Store-bought puddings do not compare to homemade ones! My husband loves chocolate pudding on toast for breakfast. So, there's a new use for it if you needed an idea! :) (That's what his mom made for them growing up.) The next time I make it, I need to snap a picture for my blog! Oops! Sorry guys! It's also great with whipped topping!


1 cup sugar
2 ounces squares of unsweetened chocolate
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups milk
3 slightly beaten egg yolks
2 tablespoons butter
1 tsp vanilla


In saucepan, combine sugar, flour and salt. gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium heat or microwave on high until mixture boils and thickens. Cook 2 minutes longer on stove top, or stir and cook 30 seconds longer in microwave. Stir small amount of the hot mixture into the egg yolks; return to hot mixture. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly on stove, or microwave 1 minute on high. Remove from heat or microwave. Add butter and vanilla; cool to room temperature. To prevent rubbery crust from forming, put clear plastic saran wrap or waxed paper directly on top, touching surface of the hot pudding , clear to the sides of bowl. Pour into baked pastry shell. Top with Meringue.

Meringue: Beat 3 eggs whites with 1/4 tsp cream of tartar and 1/2 tsp vanilla until soft peaks form. Gradually add 6 tablespoons sugar, beating until stiff peaks form and all sugar is dissolved. Spread atop pie, sealing to pastry. Bake at 350' about 12-15 minutes, or until meringue is golden. Cool.

O How He Loves Us!

Today as I was working in my garden- getting part of it tilled up, with a little sadness, I noticed so many of the unfinished projects we have around our home, or simply things that are begging to be repaired; things that I get so tired of writing on to-do lists for later times.  I started doing that thing that I do so well, thinking, "I wish that could be done..." , "I wish we could have..."  :) Then I stopped and thought about why those things aren't done. Why do I have ugly old boards holding up my raised beds in the garden? Because it's what I had to work with and I'm so glad we have been able to have a garden! Why don't we have new gutters yet after that crazy storm a couple of years ago? Because eating and keeping our house was of more priority. 



I spotted this teeny little heart-shaped lettuce (from our garden) when I was washing it last summer. So cool!



All of a sudden it hit me.

How did we survive? 

With "average" debt, many medical bills, usual bills, mortgage, basically one income... How?

How many times was money just not there? Lots but somehow we were able to pay for the things we needed. Also how many times did we go without food? None. Did we lose things that meant a lot to us? No. God really stretched our dollars and provided in miraculous ways I guess. I can't tell you that money fell from the sky, but somehow, we made it through!
God, of course provided for us!

In fact, I can't believe the things we have had through that hard time! We didn't have to sell everything we owned! I had a bountiful garden that gave us good food and we just managed to do without extra. Even the things we were able to do, with how little we had, amazes me. Money is just one small example in our lives of how well God has taken care of us- even in our stupidity with how we've handled money. (blech!) He's been there when I've been really sick with physical things too. God saw us through that just the same, with love.  

I have friends (and their families) who are going through incredible losses or awful health situations right now and I'm hoping and praying that one day, they too will see, or get to the other side soon and wonder how in the world they made it through! It's hard to go through hard stuff and it's nice to get a breather!  I hope that they will also recognize God's loving, caring hand in their lives too!

I'm sure you can remember times in your life when things were so hard and you wondered how you would make it. Then you get through it and wonder how you did indeed make it!
God. It's that simple. He is SO GOOD to us, and it seems like you recognize that even more when you least deserve it!! We are very blessed! And the lessons God has taught us through hard times is invaluable. We just don't get it when life is...easy. I encourage you to allow God to work in you through the hard times too. Life is SO hard but with God it is SO good.  

Homemaking, A Lost Art Found

I love the peacefulness of these colors on her bed as I open her door, walk in and see it! It's so soothing!

While you're reading, I thought I'd let you peak at something I worked on a couple weeks back for my daughter. I made her a "gentle" rag quilt with muslin and a variation of old colors for her bed.

I wanted to tell you about something else that I've been doing. For the past couple of months I've been leading a Women's Bible Study plus Homemaking Class at our home. It came about because of "talking" on Facebook with my friends about the things I like to do. There are so many things like; sewing, cooking, canning, putting up foods, how to make certain crafts..etc. It was on my heart to do this for about 6 months before we started getting together and I love how it's sort of blossomed into a special time I really look forward to! 

Maybe this sounds like something you'd like to start in your own community of friends? Well, I thought I write about the details so that maybe you'd feel inspired to create your own group.

We start at about 11:30. The wee ones are brought along and are watched by a couple of young ladies here so that the mom's don't have to find babysitters. First we read through the verse for the day and discuss it and other Bible verses that speak about the same general subject.  We're studying the Proverbs 31 Woman and going through it, really just one verse each week.

 Then after about an hour we break for a sack lunch that each person brings. The children are then with us , eating and the ladies chat for a few minutes while eating. I try to have some sort of snack to go along with it. Granola, deviled eggs, pumpkin muffins..etc. It's also nice when some forget their lunch in case I don't have enough lunch to share! (leftovers usually!!)


Her name is Talia Nicole and this label on the back has the meanings of her name as well as a "comforting" verse (because it's a blanket, I wanted it to be about comfort.) :)


Then after our lunch break the women get back together and learn a certain skill that we've already discussed or planned. During our first Class I taught how to make cheese crackers and graham crackers. (One of my favorite things to do is bake something that you *think* can only come from the store!) The next classes were "How to make healthy homemade baby food", "Couponing", "How to sew in an elastic waistband to clothing", "How to make homemade Castille Soap" and the most recent class was "How to give boy's a good home haircut". I can't explain to you how excited I am for other women to come into our group also and share what they know about these things too! I love the fact that it doesn't all have to come from me! We can be blessed by each other's talents! So cool!

Are you bummed you can't be there? Doesn't it sound like fun? Truly, if you want more info, just let me know and I can help you get started in creating your own group! I'd love to help!!

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