Year's End

" Thy goodness has been with me during another year,

leading me through a twisting wilderness,

in retreat helping me to advance, when beaten back

making sure headway.

Thy goodness will be with me in the year ahead;

I hoist sail and draw up anchor,

With thee as the blessed Pilot of my future

as of my past..."

The Valley of Vision

Have a Happy New Year!

I look forward to spending time with you on the porch next year. We will dig into Titus 2, read from books on purpose, see what's on the menu, and dedicate ourselves to making our house a home! Thank you for joining me.

From the porch,

Alis



Tis The Season

Good Morning Porch Pals!

As we approach year's end, I would like to remind you that it is time to clean out the spice cabinet.

Here are a few tips to enhance this chore:

1.) Test- Remove all the spices from the cabinet. Line them up and then one by one, open them and sniff. You should smell a strong odor. If this is not the case, your spice has expired. It will be flat, flavorless, and boring. So will any dishes that it is added to.

2.) Toss- Get rid of old spices. They do not need to take up space. You could wash out the jar and lid and reuse it. Simply adhere a new label with tape or a label maker.

3.) Treat- Most stores have spices and extracts on sale during the holidays. In fact our local market has the store brand marked half-off. Treat yourself to new replacements. Add one per week. Walmart has spices in the Hispanic foods aisle for around a dollar.

4.) Taste- Sample something new. Try a curry or a tangy spice blend. Trying new things will enhance your recipe repertoire.

5.) Tally- Keep a tally of your spices on the inside of the cabinet door. As you run low on one, make a note.

It's really very simple. I like to keep my spices in alphabetical order. That may sound extreme at first, but it is a real time saver. I can easily see if I have something and quickly locate it.

Dear readers I hope you will savor this experience. Take lifeless to marvelous by checking your spice expiration dates at least twice per year.

Adding flavor to your home,
Alis

Bed Rest

Victoria Rose Graphics

    "Give me summer weather in my heart."



Dear Friends,

Today finds me sick in bed. In decades past I would have tried to sweat it out, literally "stepping" to music that motivated me to move up and down, and sweat. What a silly notion to think I could perspire a bug right out! Later, came the "clean it " years. With some bleach and sanitizing wipes I'd give each germ walking papers!

More recently, I have learned to embrace this rest. It has afforded me time to pray for a neighbor who is sick with cancer. I spent most of yesterday thinking about her, and what she must be thinking about. I will not complain about this cold. I am more content to knock on the doors of heaven and intercede for my friend. For this I am grateful. Thank you God for purposeful rest.

Quote is from The Valley of Vision.

With warmest regards,
Alis

When Breakfast is on the Menu

Welcome Friends!

What a pleasure to meet with you again after the holidays. Let's just take a jiffy and check out the porch. Most of the greenery is parched and the red ribbons are unfurling. The once tightly wrapped garland is
weary and sagging. The overall mood is implying that it's time to take down, renew and refresh.

Inside, the teetering towers of crumpled wrapping paper and remnants of packing peanuts litter the ground. I'll have to admit that the room is upside-down. This temporary status of my space is swelling with keepsakes and memories of Christmas. Cleaning up will validate the very real truth that this year's celebration is indeed over. I'd rather hold on a little longer.

Perhaps a piping hot breakfast will delay the job for a few more hours. I know, let's make Upside-Down French Toast! This recipe comes from an old Girl Scouts book. It's delicious.


1/3 c. butter
1/3c. packed brown sugar
1 8oz. can crushed pineapple (drained)
4 eggs
1 c. milk
1/4 tsp. salt
6  1" thick slices French bread

Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Melt the butter in a 13x9 baking pan. Stir in brown sugar and pineapple.
In a shallow dish, beat eggs, milk and salt. Dip bread slices into egg mixture, letting bread soak about 10 seconds on each side. Arrange bread slices on top of pineapple mixture.
Bake for 20-25 minutes. Spoon on a serving plate, upside-down.

Makes 6 servings.

Have you ever noticed what happens when breakfast is on the menu? Families have more energy for the rest of the day. Lunch doesn't seem nearly as far off, and most of the family lingers... long enough to say, "I love you!"

Things will be right-side up in no time! Enjoy this easy recipe and let me know what you think. If I can make this busy day uncomplicated, all of us will have a better day!

From the porch,
Alis

Melancholy Holly

A tender note to my readers from the porch,

It would be amiss to expect that all the supporters of this blog are joyous and content this Christmas Eve.

"Through the years we all will be together, if the fates allow..." How I've wished that we could universally retire that song!

Let's face it, many of us are not together. Fate didn't acknowledge us. The song fibbed. I've been there.

I've had the meltdowns at the market when someone has asked how I'm doing. I've entertained thoughts of cancelling the celebration. I've glossed over while trying to shop in a world full of "happy" people. I've screamed at God and demanded WHY! I know how you're feeling.

And too often changes feel like more loss. However...

If you will have faith the size of a mustard seed, it will get better. The picture of the drawing above is a hand drawn card that I wrote in 2007 to a couple of family members. In the center I taped a mustard seed. I was living in a nightmare. It took my whole being to believe that life would get better. 

If this Christmas Eve finds you suffering I would propose that you remember the mustard seed. One day your weak knees will be strong again, your shattered heart will find hope again, and your upside-down world will turn right side up. It happened to me. I'm living proof.

I'm pained by your current position. But I am confident in this; we are not comforted so that we can be comfortable. We are comforted so that we may become comforters. I believe Spurgeon said that.

Hold on,
Alis

Thank You Notes

A Good Morning to You!

I hold the opinion that once a woman is ninety years of age she has received enough slipper socks, rose-scented milky white lotion, and chocolate-covered cherries to last a lifetime. She wears her "I Love Grandma" t-shirts under a chenille robe and has stacks of acid-free photo books next to her favorite chair. Her bookcases and decorative wall shelves are lined with figurines of cats and puppies and crosses and hand bells or collector spoons. She is full of pride when she speaks about her family and hesitates for a minute as she tries to recall the great grand children's ages. I want to be her.

The woman above has seen the seasons change. She was that new bride, the new mother, the keeper at home. Next, she was the grandma that offered to sit with the children so that mom and dad could have a deserved night out. When those children had grown and started families, she was the senior at the wedding, and then the great grandma that everyone talked louder around. She was lovely before, but is beautiful now because she has a cast of glory surrounding her. Hers is not a new journey beginning after the reception, but a slow walk to the end of a journey.

I hold the opinion that an appropriate gift for a woman who is ninety years of age is a thank you note. A handwritten token of affection for the woman who started our story. 

Here is an excerpt.

Thank you for allowing me to help you so that I could feel trusted.

Thank you for your perseverance so that I could feel invested in.

Thank you for sharing family stories with me so that I could feel connected.

Thank you for loving my grandfather so that I could see what a relationship should look like.


For Christmas this year I sent my grandmother a thank you note.

I couldn't get to the mailbox fast enough. Those four scribbled notes of a lifetime of memories, stuffed in an envelope, a size too small, are the best present I could have ever given her. Someday, I want to be her.

Grateful from the veranda,
Alis

And the Winner Is...

Good Morning!

The winner of the Pure Integrity candle giveaway is... Lady Rose!

I really enjoyed the thoughtful and encouraging comments left by my readers. Thank you for taking time out of your day to follow my simple thoughts on faith, family, and home. I am inspired to share further with you, as we tend to our homes and families together. May we increase in our knowledge of how to take care of them best, always with a grateful heart.


Lady Rose, you will be enjoying hours of fragrant interiors. I'm so happy for you! Please leave me your email address so that I can contact you for shipping information. You may select from Evergreen, Clove, Cranberry Spice or Bayberry.

Blessings to all.

From the porch,
Alis