I know our children have to grow up, but I really don’t like it.
I know it’s our job as parents to train our children in the way they should go… (Proverbs 2:6).
And I know it’s so important to help them through difficult times, but it’s hard.
HARD when the world is so ugly and mean and full of evil.
That’s what we’ve had to face with our 12-year old this past week. One of his sweet friends was not just killed in a house fire. And not just sweet Guinevere but her younger brother and her mom too. Authorities say it was not just a house fire but a “brutal triple homicide.”
So we decided to do whatever we could to make that happen. Fortunately, the timing worked out for us to travel to Texarkana to go. And we were so thankful we did. To hear some of the miraculous stories of God’s timing and hope made it more bearable.
Let me first introduce you to sweet Guinevere from Evan’s point of view.
Evan first met Guinevere in his kindergarten class…he, Guinevere, and Desean became instant best buddies for the next 3 years! Even if they were not in the same class, they still played together every day on the playground. She made Evan homemade Valentine & birthday cards because she said he was the only boy that wasn’t “mean and gross.”
Two special memories stick out for me…when she came to his 8th birthday party…all dolled up with his special birthday card & gift. She was a little sweet on him, I think. J
In 3rd grade, they ended up going to different schools, but they didn’t forget each other. She called him one time because she missed him. And then Evan wanted to invite her to his birthday party. She couldn’t come that day, so she called & asked him to play putt-putt with her at the mall.
Being the very conservative parents that we are, we were really debating but we thought it would be ok. It turned out that I had something to do, so Daddy had to take him. He had to sit & visit with her mom the whole time they played. They had the best time! Sweet memories!
And then last Wednesday morning, we got the call from my parents that there had been a horrible house fire…that’s all we knew at the time. I’m so glad Daddy got the call at work & then called me. I don’t think I would have handled it by myself really well. I knew something was wrong when his voice was quivering & he started crying… “It’s Guinevere,” he said.
My thoughts couldn’t focus much the rest of the day. We talked to Evan at lunch. He was pretty much in shock until the next day when his emotions got the best of him.
Such a hard life lesson to learn at such a young age!
I remember one of my band friends dying in a car wreck when I was a junior. I can still remember where I was when I learned the news. I will never forget it.
So back to the funeral…two stories will stick with us forever! Testimonies of God’s sovereignty.
First, one of the preachers told us that Guinevere just got baptized on Easter Sunday! Just 17 days before the tragedy! God was working on her! She was so active in Awana, learning about God and memorizing scriptures! Praise the Lord!
But that story pales in comparison to this one…
Within hours of the fire starting, all sorts of investigators set up camp at the scene…not only local authorities but the Texas Rangers and the ATF. They combed the ashes foot by foot, scooping up the ashes & taking them to the back yard & sifting them to see if they could possibly find any “evidence” to help them solve this crime. It was only AFTER every square inch of the house was combed by the investigators that the family got to walk around the remains of the house. It was during that time that Guinevere’s stepdad kicked over a pile of ashes and a bag fell over. The drawstring bag disintegrated from the heat, but inside was a t-shirt with something wrapped up inside of it…Guinevere’s Bible and her little green Gideon Bible that she got at school as a 5th grader!
God’s word was NOT destroyed! A little wet from the water from the fire fighters…but both were completely intact!
Bro. Farrin said that her stepdad had been praying and pleading with God to give them some sign that He was with them…and there it was! Guinevere’s Bibles!
Matthew 24:35 says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my WORDS will never pass away!”
When we think there is no hope, no peace, we can rest assured that God’s WORDS are “alive and active.” His WORD will always give us hope! His WORD will help us through any trial or trouble…no matter how hard they are!
Thank you, dear Lord, for giving us a glimpse of Your presence in the midst of this horrible tragedy!
Guinevere, so many people will miss your sweet friendship. But we pray that your testimony and God’s gift to your family of His HOPE through your Bible surviving the fire will bring many others to His saving grace!
“And we know that in all things God works for the GOOD of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
M&M's on top & inside! 
Oreos on the top...
Oreo Cupcakes
ADAPTED from Beantown Baker
Cupcakes
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour, plus 2 Tbsp for the Oreo chunks
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/3 c. plain yogurt
1 pkg. instant white chocolate pudding
4 large eggs
1 pkg Oreo Cookies (~45 cookies)
Preheat over to 325F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.
Twist apart 24 Oreos. Place the wafer with filling on it, filling side up, in the bottom of each paper liner. Cut 12 of the other wafers in half. Save these 24 halves to place in the frosting.
Crush the other wafer halves, also for garnishing.
Cut the remaining Oreo cookies into quarters with a sharp knife. Toss with 2 Tbsp flour and set aside. (This helps them not drop to the bottom of the batter.)
In a large bowl cream the butter until fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the milk and vanilla and mix to combine.
In a separate bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix until integrated. Stir in sugar. With an electric mixer on low speed, beat for 30 seconds. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes. Add the eggs. Beat for 2 more minutes. Stir in the quartered cookies.
Fill the cupcake liners three-quarters full. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of cupcakes comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in the pan.
Cream Cheese Frosting
4 oz cream cheese at room temp
1 stick butter at room temp
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
4-5 cups powdered sugar
Cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy (about 3-5 minutes).
Add vanilla extract. Slowly add powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.
Assembling the cupcakes
Once cupcakes have cooled completely, frost with cream cheese frosting. Sprinkle with crushed Oreos and place 1/2 of an Oreo on the frosting of each cupcake.
M & M's Cupcakes
1 package French Vanilla cake mix
1 package vanilla pudding mix
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/3 cup oil
4 eggs
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1 1/4 cup M&Ms (toss 2/3 cup of M&M in 1 T. flour to keep from falling to bottom of batter)
Preheat oven to 325F.
Line two 12-cup muffin pans and one 6-cup pan with cupcake paper liners.
In a large bowl, combine cake mix, pudding mix, flour, milk, oil, yogurt, and eggs.
Beat with an electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds. Then beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl once or twice with a rubber spatula.
Quickly fold in 2/3 cup M&M's and divide among muffin cups
Sprinkle a few more candies on top of each.
Bake 20 to 22 minutes, until cupcakes are fully risen and golden brown on top.
Remove and let cool.
Frost each cupcake with cream cheese frosting. (The same as the Oreo Cupcake recipe.)
Sprinkle remaining M&M's on top.
If you would have asked me my opinion about homeschooling 2 years ago, my answers would have been dramatically different than they are now.
Several circumstances led us to our decision to bring Evan home from public school to teach him at home for his 6th grade year. It all started when I read Sally Clarkson’s book, the Mission of Motherhood, last fall (2009). This was the book that our ladies decided to study on Wednesday nights at church, but I couldn’t join them on the discussions because I was in our handbell group that met at the same time for practice.
This book changed my life!
I had never heard of Sally Clarkson before, but let me just tell you that this author put into words what I’ve felt for the past ten years as I tried to balance all of my roles as a wife, mom, and teacher to the best of my ability! Early in the book she talked about having a “divided heart.” It was then that I started dreaming of the idea that we could actually homeschool Evan & bring our family closer together. (Not to mention that we had become friends with a family just the summer before that had homeschooled for 8 years and totally admired their children!)
Another major influence on our decision is the fact that Evan has dyslexia and has struggled with academics as a result. He is very intelligent but his gifts are not in writing and reading—but if you ask him to explain something to you, he’ll talk your ear off! He maintained an A/B average because we were always staying on top of his assignments and stayed in close contact with his teachers. However, that daily struggle & homework until bedtime was really wearing on all of our nerves.
We also could see how he was being affected by the “worldly” influences at school. It is our heart’s desire that both of our boys grow up to have a love for Jesus and live godly lives. Each year, we could see more & more of the world creeping in on his thoughts & attitudes. We wanted to be able to teach both boys about God’s word every day and teach them about things that have eternal significance. However, with our busy jobs & his homework load, the most important things would often get neglected for the daily deadlines of homework & tests.
After SEVERAL months of prayer, research, and late-night discussions with my husband, we decided God was indeed leading us to take a HUGE step of faith & homeschool Evan. This would mean that I would quit my teaching job of 17 years & live on Eric’s church income. This made us very nervous, to say the least! But we felt that if God was leading us to this decision, then He would help us make it financially!
And I am happy to say that we have survived this first year with so blessings! I can’t say that it’s always been easy…some people have told me that homeschooling is not for the faint of heart! Boy, is that true! Some days it’s extremely difficult. But the positives definitely far outweigh the negatives!
Here are just a few of the benefits:
We said we would try this for a year and see how it helped Evan, and we have decided since it’s gone so well this year, then we will do it again next year. Ethan is still too young to start school, so we’ll just have to keep praying about that decision.
This just barely scratches the surface of all the thoughts & discussions that we’ve had about homeschooling…perhaps I’ll share more soon.
I came across a Homemade Granola Recipe on the Life As Mom blog that sounded really interesting. I started searching for other recipes. I took what looked good on each of the recipes and came up with my own. I also had to use what I had on hand. I only had peanuts and pumpkin seeds. I didn’t have any almonds, sesame seeds, or sunflower seeds, but I definitely want to use them next time I make it. This was really good…especially with vanilla yogurt! Eric liked it with milk too!
Honey Granola Recipe:
4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
1/2 cup whole raw almonds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup canola oil or ¼ cup butter
1/2 cup honey
¼- ½ cup pure maple syrup
½ cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup dried fruits (cranberries, cherries, apricots, dates, figs, and/or raisins) (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and place rack in the center of the oven. Either butter or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (I used aluminum foil & sprayed it with Pam.)
In a large bowl combine the rolled oats, nuts, seeds, ground cinnamon, and salt.
In a small saucepan, stirring constantly, bring just to a boil the water, oil, honey, syrup, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and toss together, making sure all the dry ingredients are coated with the liquid. Spread onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 25 - 40 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally so the mixture browns evenly. (The browner the granola gets (without burning) the crunchier the granola will be.) Place on a wire rack to cool. You will notice that the granola may still be sticky when it is removed from the oven but it will become crisp and dry as it cools. Make sure to break up any large clumps of granola while the mixture is still warm. Once the granola has completely cooled, store in an airtight container or plastic bag in the refrigerator. It will keep for several weeks.
Serve with dried or fresh fruit and milk.
Makes about 6 cups.
You could find other recipes at www.joyofbaking.com and www.lifeasmom.com.
And Oreos in the middle AND on the bottom...YUM!