Sunday morning thoughts . . . soul food

Source: pinterest.com via Marie on Pinterest

“You are the guardians of the hearth,” said President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008) as he introduced “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” in the general Relief Society meeting in 1995. “You are the bearers of the children. You are they who nurture them and establish within them the habits of their lives. No other work reaches so close to divinity as does the nurturing of the sons and daughters of God.”

One thing that each of us has here on earth, is a family. It may be a large one, or a small one. It might be just yourself and a much beloved pet, or friend. (Friends are family we get to choose for ourselves, after all.) They might be close to hand, or they live thousands of miles away. Family are those people, friends, pets that we love on this earth more than anything, and who we would do anything for . . . the ones that we just cannot imagine living our lives without them playing some part in it, however small or large . . .



I have a really large family composed of the Toddster, Mitzie, and family I have made for myself over here in the UK, my family back in Canada, and of course, friends that I cherish dearly.

"Heaven is a place, but it is also a condition; it is home and family. It is understanding and kindness. It is interdependance and it is selfless activity. It is quiet, sane living; personal sacrifice, and it is genuine hospitality, wholesome concern for others. It is living the commandments of God without ostentation or hypocrisy. It is a sweet glimpse of heaven, or a little bit of heaven on earth." ~Spencer W Kimball

Home is where you hang your heart and where reside the things which matter most to you. For me, my home is where Todd is. He is the love of my life, that special person which I waited a whole lifetime to find and share my life with. I like to think of our home as that little piece of heaven here on earth. I know that behind our front door, and within these walls there resides a special peace . . . love lives here . . . and I hope that anyone who walks through our front door is able to feel it too.

Source: sawdustcityllc.com via Marie on Pinterest

But, I also have another home. It is thousands of miles away and scattered into many pieces . . . just like that part of my heart which belongs to my children and grandchildren . . . there are pieces in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Ontario. It is a journey that began almost 37 years ago when I held my first and oldest son in my arms and became a mother for the first time. All my growing up years I wanted nothing more than to be a mother. I was not a perfect mom . . . Lord knows I have made my mistakes through the years . . . but I have loved my children with all that I am and all that I have . . . and I feel the same way about my grandchildren. They are the apples of my eye.

"Children being pure and holy, teach us something of our heavenly home. No gift bestowed upon us is as precious as children. They are proof that God still loves us. They are the hope of the future!" ~David O McKay

Source: proclamationpictures.blogspot.com via Marie on Pinterest

Pieces of my heart also reside with my mother in Nova Scotia, my father in Quebec, and my sister and brother in Ontario. They are my family too, and they share something with me that nobody else does . . . they share a history with me that nobody else does . . . and roots that go deep down into the Canadian soil, that cannot be altered or budged. They are so wonderful to me and I treasure all that we have shared or ever will share, with all of my heart.

Family is eternal, and a part of our Heavenly Father's great plan for us . Within the walls of family . . . we should be able to find strength, love, understanding, hope . . . joy. It does not have to be perfect. None of us are. I find comfort in that truth, in knowing that however far we may move away from each other here on earth . . . we will come together again one day, and we can be together eternally, in a most beautiful place.



I do not understand people who have no belief or faith . . . where is the hope in that . . . the promise. How much more wonderful to believe that we were sent here to earth by a loving and caring being, with a wondrous and marvelous purpose for being here . . . and that when we leave this place, we can return again to that beautiful and divine place, to live with our family's and our Heavenly Father again, for eternity.

I know I am just rambling now . . . but these are my thoughts as I sit here this morning. I am filled with love for my family, both the near and the far . . . both the given and the chosen. They . . . you . . . are a blessing to me in a myriad of ways . . .

“...love...it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, in our church callings, and our livelihood. Love is the healing balm that repairs rifts in personal and family relationships. It is the bond that unites families, communities and nations. love is the power that initiates friendship, tolerance, civility, and respect. It is the source that overcomes divisiveness and hate. Love is the fire that warms our lives with unparalleled joy and divine hope. Love should be our walk and our talk.”
― Dieter F. Uchtdorf




Baking in The English Kitchen today, a delicious "Eccles Cake." Oh so scrummy.

A happy and blessed Sunday to each of you. Smile. Find joy in the small and the simple. Be at peace.

Poetry Saturday . . . I remember, I remember

Source: moonlightrainbow.tumblr.com via Marie on Pinterest

I remember, I remember
The house where I was born,
The little window where the sun
Came peeping in at morn;
He never came a wink too soon,
Nor brought too long a day,
But now I often wish the night
Had borne my breath away!

Source: mylittlecottage.tumblr.com via Marie on Pinterest

I remember, I remember
The roses, red and white,
The violets, and the lily cups,
Those flowers made of light!
The lilacs where the robin built,
And where my brother set
The laburnum on his birthday . . .
The tree is living yet!

Source: weheartit.com via Helen on Pinterest

I remember, I remember,
Where I used to swing,
And thought the air must rush as fresh
To swallows on the wing;
My spirit flew in feathers then,
That is so heavy now,
And summer pools could hardly cool
The fever on my brow!

Source: louboosandshoes.blogspot.com via Marie on Pinterest

I remember, I remember,
The fir trees dark and high,
I used to think their slender tops
Were close against the sky:
It was a childish ignorance,
But now 'tis little joy
To know I'm farther off from heaven
Than when I was a boy.
~Thomas Hood

Thomas Hood was a British Poet and humourest, born in London in 1799. "Next to being a citizen of the world," writes Thomas Hood in his Literary Reminiscences, "it must be the best thing to be born a citizen of the world's greatest city." Hood’s most widely known work during his lifetime was a poem titled "The Song of the Shirt", which was a lament for a poor London seamstress who had been compelled to sell shirts that she had made, the proceeds of which lawfully belonged to her employer, in order to feed her malnourished and ailing child. Hood also wrote humorously on many contemporary issues.

As I was reading through this poem, I was reminded of the way I saw the world when I was a child, how everything seemed so magical and how all things were possible . . . our spirits gliding through life as if on light. That is, as long as we are lucky enough to have been born into happy circumstances. I am sure that there are children in this world that have a completely different reality than this, and my heart aches for them . . . I wish truly that every child in this world could live a life free from care and woe . . .

Source: carolinearber.com via Marie on Pinterest

I got the all clear from the hospital yesterday and was discharged from being a Gynological Patient, so that was great news. I had another scan and it was good, as were the blood tests. I was quite relieved. Although the biopsy before Christmas had come back negative, the fear was always there in the back of my mind, that perhaps on this three month check up things would not be as they should. I was greatly relieved to know that all was well.

I'm finding it really difficult coming up with recipes for both this blog and my food blog each day. I have decided that I will only on occasion show a recipe on here. I really want this page to be mostly food for the spirit. I know that I will lose readers because of that . . . but c'est la vie. There will be the occasional recipe, but food for the most part will be in The English Kitchen. I am happy with my decision, and I hope you all will understand. I may show you the odd craft and painting on here, but food will definitely be taking a back seat.

No plans for today. A bit of work, a bit of fun and everything in between. Life is good. Have a wonderful Saturday everyone and don't forget . . .

“What we love determines what we seek. What we seek determines what we think and do. What we think and do determines who we are — and who we will become.”
― Dieter F. Uchtdorf



There's a pretty amazing Banana, Cranberry and Walnut Loaf baking in The English Kitchen today. Seriously, this is the best Banana Loaf I have ever baked or tasted!

Friday morning happenings . . . it's all go, go, go!!

Source: louboosandshoes.blogspot.com via Mary Beth on Pinterest

I've not a lot of time this morning as I have a hospital appointment to go to and I need to be there at 9:30, which is a bit early for us to be out and about. When we went the other morning for the blood test the traffic was horrendous! Morning rush hour traffic and the cars pouring into the hospital were just unreal. Everyone going in to work I suppose! You should see the bruise I still have on my arm. The plebotonist was in a bit of a hurry that morning, and I don't know why. There was nobody waiting behind me. In any case when I got home I noticed a large red lump next to the plaster and when I took the plaster off, it spread into a large bruised area about 4 inches in diameter. It still looks really bad, some five days later. That is the first time this has happened to me, although I have known it to happen to other people at different times. I have had to defend Todd's honour all week!! No, he didn't beat me! haha.

I was able to get a piece of work finished yesterday that I have been working at over a space of time. I wanted to present it in two ways.



This is the first way. (I don't know why the shading on her dress isn't showing. It's very faint in the pictures, but I can assure you it's there in real life!) This is the non-LDS version. Of course it's available as a print or a card. Then there is the LDS verson:



This version had the image of the temple on it. One of the things our church believes in is called the law of chastity. This means keeping yourselves pure in thought, word and deed, dressing modestly, and in keeping those intimate things between a man and a woman exclusively for marriage . . . keeping ourselves worthy to go to the Temple and to be sealed together with our mates for Time and all Eternity. This is something that is very sacred and very important to us and a great blessing in our lives. In any case this is a young woman looking towards the Temple where she hopes one day to make sacred covenants with her Heavenly Father and to be sealed together with her husband for Time and all Eternity. I think it would be lovely framed and hung on the bedroom wall of that special young woman in your life, so if you are interested, just let me know and I'll tell you how you can have it! (Either version! We all need to keep our standards high, whether we are LDS or not!)

Sorry for the brevity of my post today but duty calls. (It's nothing to worry about, just a follow up appointment from the problems I had last autumn. I am not concerned in any way.)

The recipe today is for a really delicious lasagne which has all the flavours of a delicious pepperoni pizza, except it's not pizza . . . it's lasagne! The recipe comes from one of those grocery store leaflets I think. It is copied into my Big Blue Binder and it is something that my kids always enjoyed. Todd's not overly fond of it . . . it's the pizza and pasta thing . . . he just doesn't care for either one, but he does eat it when I make it for the missionaries. I usually make it in two dishes so that I can freeze one if it doesn't get cut into.



*Pizza Lasagne*
Serves 8
Printable Recipe

If you like pizza, you are going to love this!

9 uncooked lasagne noodles
1 can (15 ounce) pizza sauce
1 can (14.5 ounce) tin of diced tomatoes with green pepper and onion, undrained
1 (15 ounce) container of ricotta cheese
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
7 ounces sliced pepperoni
1 tin of sliced mushrooms, drained
1 (2 1/4 ounce) tin of sliced ripe olives, drained
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 TBS grated Parmesan cheese

Cook the lasagne noodles as directed on the package. Drain, rinse and then drain again. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Have ready a 12 by 9 inch baking dish which you have sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Mix the pizza sauce and tomatoes together in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring often, until heated through. Mix the ricotta cheese and Italian Seasoning together in a bowl.

Spread 1/4 cup of the sauce mixture into the bottom of the baking dish. Arrange 3 cooked noodles over the sauce. Spoon and spread half of the ricotta mixture over top of the noodles. Top with 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, 1 cup of the sauce, 1/3 each of the pepperoni slices, mushrooms, olives and green pepper. Repeat layers once.

Top with the remaining three noodles, sauce mixture, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni slices, mushrooms, olives and bell pepper. Sprinkle the Parmesan Cheese evenly over all.

Bake, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, or until bubbly and golden. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting into squares to serve. I would serve this with hot buttered toast and a salad on the side.



There are Baked Potatoes Stuffed with Leeks and Cheese on offer over in The English Kitchen today along with a few other bits and pieces and some seriously fantastic cookbooks! Do hop over and take a look!