Red Glove Series by Karen Kingsbury

What a great series. All of the books are very heartwarming stories. Not very long stories. Easy to read in a day or two but very, very good stories. Kind of nice for a quick, easy summer read.

The books are:

Gideon's Gift

Hannah's Hope

Maggie's Miracle

Sarah's Song

Read them all - they are all very good. At the end, they have ideas for doing your own red glove project. The red gloves represent the gift of giving. Red - the color of our savior's blood. Through that He gave us the greatest gift of all - eternal life. The red gloves show up as a symbol in all the books. In Hannah's Hope the red gloves were a Christmas present that Hannah had received. They had the word 'believe' embroidered inside them so that Hannah would remember that she to continue to have faith and believe in God and that He has the ability to do miracles.

Great video

What a great video - wonderful photography! Great testament to God's creation.

Click here to view

Roasted Cumin & Chickpea Salad

3/4 tsp ground cumin

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Salt and Pepper

1 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced

1 medium tomato, chopped

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

1 oz feta, crumbled (about 1/4 cup)

1. Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add the cumin and cook, stirring until toasted and fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer to a large bowl.

2. Add the oil, lime juice, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp pepper to the bowl and whisk to combine.

3. Add the chickpeas, celery, tomato and onion. Toss to combine. Let sit, tossing occasionally for 15 minutes.

4. Fold in the feta before serving.

I found this recipe in a Woman's Day magazine - and was pleasantly surprised by how good it tasted. I am always looking for new and interesting things to make for the family. Salads are so nice during the summer. No turning on the oven! A huge plus when it has been rather hot here lately.

Spicy Skillet Chicken

Spicy Skillet Chicken by Betty Crocker --- I tried this for the first time and my husband absolutely loved it. Thought it was one of the best recipes I have made in a long time. Even I loved it - as it was flavorful but not really spicy.

Here is a link to the recipe: link to recipe

It is really quick and easy to make. And very, very good.

Book review - The Girl in the Green Sweater

The Girl in the Green Sweater

by Krystyna Chiger

What an amazing survival story. This is a true story told by a survivor of the holocaust. She and her family survived by living underground in the sewer system of Lvov, Poland. A sewer worker, Leopold Socha, feels that he will find redemption by helping this family out. He comes every day and brings supplies and food. It is a nasty, dirty place to live but they do survive. It is an amazing story. I recommend reading this story. We need to remember and never forget - we can never let it happen again.

4th of July - let us remember

Wave On, Old Glory, Wave On

Pray for our troop and their families.

May God bless all who serve and keep them safe.

Fresh Corn Salad

This was really delicious. A great salad to make for the summer. Light, fresh. Does have a bit of a zip to it. Be warned though - it makes quite a lot. I am showing a small portion here in the picture - that I packed up for my parents to take home.

8 ears of corn, shucked

6 fresh tomatoes, chopped (I used Roma tomatoes)

2 cucumbers (The recipe said to peel, seed and chop - I didn't do that. I used only one cucumber but I used the whole thing. I did not peel or seed the cucumber.)

2 green onions, chopped

1 green sweet pepper, seeded and chopped. (I also added a red, yellow and orange sweet pepper - seeded and chopped)

1 jalapeno - seeded and chopped. (I don't like things too spicy so I only used 1/2 of the jalapeno.)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

4 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat grill to medium-high. Brush corn with a little olive oil. Grill corn until lightly browned, turning to cook evenly. Cool. When cool enough to handle, cut corn from cobs.

2. Toss corn with tomatoes, cucumbers, green onions, pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, vinegar and the 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss and marinate at least 2 hours in the refrigerator before serving.