grandma's cookbook - Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

As I was browsing through Pinterest this morning I saw a recipe which looks interesting . . . fun to make . . . and which is likely to be very tasty! Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie!!!! Even the name is delicious sounding!!!

Celebrate Your Grandchildren

The other day was "Wonderful Weirdos  Day" - a day to celebrate the non-boring, interesting and unique people in your life. Now, to me this sounds like a great way to describe us all, so I look at it as a fun day to celebrate the people in my life, and so is every day!

Curriculum to Help You Hand Down Confident Faith

I am often asked by grandmas (and grandpas, too) how they are able to do more to hand down confident faith than pray and invite

their grandchildren to go to church with them, and my answer is always to watch for unexpected opportunities for conversations which connect life with God, be sure we live what we say, and plan special opportunities to have those important conversations. It is typically the third of these three things with which they find the most challenging, so today I'm going to walk you though a new curriculum written to help you plan these special opportunities.

Granny Square Purse for Grandma!!!

I had some granny squares on hand, I thought I'd take them and make a new purse . . . 

Be Equipped to Influence the Ones You Love

I have wonderful news . . . I have finally been able to reduce the cost of the print books for the "Life on the 'Goldilocks Planet'" curriculum/book series! I am limited by the printing costs, but have been able to reduce the price for the print book by $4.50 for the Amazon book and by $5.00 for the print copies I sell in my bookstore by reformatting them and changing the size! The content is still the same.

crafting with grandma - Crocheted Upside-Down Doll!

When I was a child, my family often vacationed in the Smokey Mountains. One year on our trip, I was browsing in a "souvenir" store with my mom and saw an Upside-Down doll. It was something I had not seen before and my mom said I could have one. The doll became one of my favorites; what's not to love about two dolls in one???!!!

When my daughter was little, I made an upside-down bunny doll for her . . . one side was the awake doll and the other was the sleeping doll. I was pretty happy with how it turned out and Tiffany liked it, too!

So, the other day I was browsing on Pinterest and saw a link for a free crochet pattern for an upside-down Cinderella doll! one side she is dressed to work and the other side she is dressed to dance at the ball! If I had granddaughters, I'd definitely be making them for Christmas!

Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, Pangolins & More! - the Tool You Need to Hand Down a Confident Faith

Yesterday we received our print copies of book two in the "Life on the 'Goldilocks Planet'" series - Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, Pangolins & More!  Obviously three of the twelve animals in this book are Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, and Pangolins, but today I'm happy to let you know what the other nine animals are . . . the Cassowary, Sunflower Sea Star, Large Blue Butterfly, Mantled Guereza Colobus Monkey, Golden Poison Dart Frog, Sun Bear, Hawksbill Sea Turtle, Tufted Puffin, and Archerfish.

grandma's cookbook - Toffee Butter Cookies!

Get ready to start gathering ingredients and baking totally delicious cookies . . . this morning I was browsing on Pinterest and found a link to a recipe for Toffee Butter Cookies! Now, my husband - and grandchildren - enjoy toffee and Josiah is particularly a fan of butter cookies . . . after all, what isn't there to LOVE about butter cookies???!!!

Equip & Engage Families for Just $1 Per Family

As the new school year begins is your church restarting their ministry to children and families? With covid still claiming lives across our country and so many schools trying to open, only to close due to outbreaks, most churches are not yet trying to offer on-campus Children's Ministry. But this does not mean your church is not able to do something with the families in your church. Take a look at what they are able to do for just $1 per family . . . 

Sharpie Tie Dye

Three years ago, two of my three grandsons participated in the Mud Run - my third grandson was two years too young to run through the mud with his brothers. As you might imagine, he was quite sad about not being able to get in the mud with his dad and brothers. So, we told him he had a very, very important job to do at the Mud Run - the job of "Look Out"!

He spent time on his poppa's shoulders and other time with me watching for his dad and brothers, so we would be able to get lots of photos of them. Plus, whenever they were near, he shouted, "Run faster! Get Muddier!" While he would have preferred - much preferred to run through the mud, he took on the job of "Look Out/Spotter" and helped us keep an eye out for his dad and brothers. 

Live a Life of Love & Faith - It Makes a Difference for Generations

For the past few weeks I've been a bit distracted on posting - I've re-used some of my older posts, which, on its own is fine as new readers may not have had the opportunity to read these older posts and even if you did read them a few years ago, you may not have remembered them. But, I have been reposting  - or not posting - due to being distracted, because we were expecting my dad to leave this life - which he did in the wee hours of this morning. So today, I want to post about him. (Yes, this photo is of my parents, husband, children, grandchildren, and me - it was taken a few years ago.)

It's Thoughtful Day!

Today is Thoughtful Day! A day to be focused on being thoughtful to those around you. Of course, every day should be, Thoughtful Day, but since there is a special day to focus on being thoughtful, I thought it would be fun today to think about ways you can engage your grandchildren in being thoughtful on purpose!

Do the Most Important Thing - Hand Down Confident Faith

Do you know what a Cassowary is? Have you ever heard of a Sun Bear, Sunflower Sea Star, or an Archerfish? What do you know about Pangolins? These five animals, and seven more, are included in my new book - Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, Pangolins & More! and not only will you be able to use this book to share full-color photos of the animals and fun facts about them with your grandchildren, but you will also learn how each of these animals were designed "just right" to have the things they needed to be able to survive. When you share these things with the children you love, you will be able to show them "why" they are able to believe in God - the Designer - with confidence.

If we are serious about handing down the faith, we need to share with the children we love not only what to believe (although this is important), but also why they are able to believe with confidence. The day will come when they will be faced with people who do not believe. If we have not equipped them with the "whys" for their faith, the ones we love may join the increasing numbers of young adults who walk away from their faith. It is vital for us to teach our grandchildren and children the "whys" - and this book will help you do so.

Look what people are saying about this book . . .

Hand Down a Confident Faith with "Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, Pangolins & More!"

Today I am very happy to let you know about a new book - Eyelash Vipers, Pygmy Elephants, Pangolins & More! This book is the second book in the new "Life on the 'Goldilocks Planet'" series and will equip you to hand down a confident faith to the children you love. It is available on Amazon at this link and in our bookstore at this link. If you order it through our bookstore, you will save a couple dollars and will receive an autographed copy.

This book will equip you to engage your grandchildren, have a great time learning about the amazing world around us, and see how God's design is everywhere we look - and shows us why we are able to believe He is real! I am so humbled and thankful for this endorsement from Tim & Darcy Kimmel for my new book series - they said . . .