The Ways of Her Home

Embracing the homeward call

Papa Melvin’s Workshop

It's really hard to know where to start a post when a loved has passed from this earth to go home to heaven. I could brush over it and keep posting about cooking, cleaning, and other aspects of daily life. However, I would be remiss to not stop and pay tribute to a truly great man. My father-in-law was hardworking, honest, and devoted. He lived a life committed to the Lord through years of providing for his family, adoring his wife, raising his kids, and serving his church and community. Later in life he enjoyed the fruit of his labor with a retirement that offered almost a decade of cruise vacations with his bride and woodworking in the shop just behind their house. Melvin was quite ... Read more

Easter Story Cookies

Good morning, friends! It’s been quite a while since I last posted here on the blog; so much has happened the last couple of months. I’ll catch you up on everything  soon, but for now, I’d just like to share something fun and positive towards Resurrection Sunday. It’s a wonderful hands-on story recipe called Easter Story Cookies that I used to make with my girls when they were little. Baking and stories were always a couple of our favorite things to enjoy together, so this cookie recipe that illustrates the story of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection was the perfect opener for our Easter weekends! I forgot about this activity as the girls got older, but I recently ran across ... Read more

Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Bars

Last week my ladies and I got together for salads and dessert (and laughing, crying, and figuring out life). We kept supper simple with everyone bringing their favorite salad. I'm always delighted at how the meal comes together when everyone brings their specialty! It makes such a wonderful plate of food! We topped off our supper and conversation with coffee and a couple of desserts. Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Bars are perfect for ladies' gatherings. The raspberry flavor and color are ideal for a very Valentiney dessert. I also make them for bridal and baby showers (you can use blueberry jam for boy baby showers). They are so delicious and can be eaten easily with fingers while ... Read more

Prayer Requests

Good morning, friends. Isn’t this little chapel just lovely? It’s the Ida Cason Callaway Memorial Chapel in the beautiful Callaway Gardens of Pine Mountain, Georgia. Living in somewhat close proximity to the gardens has allowed me to visit many times through the years. This sweet chapel is nestled inside the woods along a quiet trail of trickling creeks, rustling pines, and fragrant blossoms. Approaching the chapel and entering its wooden doors, gives one the most peaceful feeling, and I’ve always thought that if I lived in these woods, I would walk to the chapel every day for prayer. Although I don’t have my own little prayer chapel in the woods, I do have my own quiet place to pray each ... Read more

Family Bible Celebration

Bible study is important to our family, both individually and collectively. We each use our early morning quiet time for personal Bible reading, and then in the evenings we have family Bible time. Some years we’ve read through the Bible, taking a chapter a night to read and discuss (this takes a couple of years). Other years we’ve worked through a topical study together. We’ve done this since our girls were little, not perfectly, but somewhat consistently enough that we’ve read through the Old and New Testaments together a few times. Sometimes when we’ve completed a particular study, or accomplished a big Bible memory goal as a family, we’ve had a small celebration with a special dessert or ... Read more

Breaking Bread in Good Company

Yesterday was a full day in the kitchen, cooking and baking for the feast to come on Thursday. In addition to the the preparations for Thursday's meal with family, there were also preparations being made for another family meal. It's a meal we'll partake of on Sunday with our church family. Communion. Our church congregation has a rotation of ladies who prepare the bread, and I've been eager to take a turn. Working on the bread yesterday wasn't just another item on my baking list. As I mixed, rolled, and stamped the dough, I reflected on the meaning of communion, for Whom we partake it, and with whom we partake it. The Latin word for bread is "PANIS". It's the word from which our words ... Read more

Happy is the House

The following post is a piece I wrote for my previous blog several years ago. Our home continues to be blessed with the happiness others bring into it! Have a lovely fall day, friends! Above our family’s front door hangs a plaque that reads Happy is the house that shelters a friend--a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Although the plaque has hung in our home for over a decade now, I still smile every time I read it because Emerson’s words epitomize the blessings we receive when family and friends come to visit. Our family delights in welcoming people into our home and into our lives! You see, the joy begins with the anticipation of “company’s coming”— the planning, preparations, and excitement ... Read more

And The Sun Rises Again

Good morning! Isn’t that sunrise breathtaking! I got to witness that particular sunrise in person earlier this week. Sunrises are one of my best motivators for rising early and hitting the ground running (or maybe just walking briskly!). I’ve been a little MIA here the last couple of weeks. I planned to get in a few posts last week, but a 3-day migraine derailed those plans. This week has been back-to-homeschool so I’m just getting around to hopping back on here and saying hello! During the summer months my kids all sleep later—a perk that comes with having older kids (hang in there young mamas!)—but I continued to rise with the hubs at our regular 5A, which not only allowed me my usual ... Read more