Ancient Words

Jesus loves you, Kinley! It was more than just a message on a cake or a pretty new dress.

As I watched her Mommy's hands encircle hers before morning worship began at Susanna Wesley United Methodist Church in Topeka, I thought about the legacy of faith that has been passed from generation to generation.

I know that not every denomination believes in infant baptism. But it is part of our United Methodist tradition.

In December 1985, Jill was baptized at the Stafford United Methodist Church. She was about 3 months old, similar to Kinley's 10 weeks.

And just like with Kinley, grandparents were there to witness the sacrament and stand alongside as the new parents continued a heritage of faith.

Kinley's grandparents and great-grandparents were all there to witness the special day.

Eric's brothers, Drew & Brian, sister-in-law Jillian and baby Hannah were there, too.

Kinley's cousin, Hannah, (born just one month after Kinley) will be baptized on Palm Sunday at their own church.

During an infant baptism, the parents confess their belief in Jesus Christ as their Savior and commit to nurture their child by teaching and example:

... "that the child may be guided to accept God's grace for themselves, to profess their faith openly and to lead a Christian life."

But it's more than just Jill and Eric and their families. The church family at Susanna Wesley also commits to this baptized child. Before the service, I had watched families with young children barrel headlong into the sanctuary. I watched older congregants make their way slowly down the aisles, pausing to say hello.

During the baptism sacrament, the congregation says together:

With God's help we will proclaim the good news and live according to the example of Christ. We will surround Kinley with a community of love and forgiveness, that she may grow in her trust of God and be found faithful in her service to others. We will pray for her that she may be a true disciple who walks in the way that leads to Life.

How awesome is that?!

Pastor David & Kinley

A children's choir sang during the worship service. I was struck by the message of the song, Ancient Words, by Michael W. Smith.

Holy words of our faith
Handed down to this age
Came to us through sacrifice
Oh, heed the faithful words of Christ.

Holy words long preserved
For our walk in this world
Courage, peace, a loving heart
Oh, let the ancient words impart.

And that's what I pray for Kinley.

Here's Michael W. Smith's rendition of Ancient Words. Enjoy!

Cabbage (Minus the Corned Beef)

Corned beef and cabbage form the centerpiece for many a St. Patrick's Day feast. And I'm sure it's a fine feast, but I've never made it. I will leave it to the experts, I suppose.

But cabbage does have a starring role in a salad I made last weekend for Kinley's baptism lunch, then made again as an accompaniment to sandwiches for supper.

It was one of the recipes I saved when I was compiling Jill and Eric's Family and Friend Favorites recipe book. And after eating it, I've come to the conclusion that I should have tried it long ago. You know how it goes though: Recipes go into a "to try" pile. And then they pile up.

I'm glad I finally unearthed it. If you want to add a little cabbage to your St. Patty's day meal (sans corned beef), give this a try. There's probably nothing remotely Irish about it. But it's easy and tasty.

Slaw Salad
Recipe from Dorothy Trinkle, Presston
(Jill & Brent's Piano Teacher)

1 bag refrigerated coleslaw mix with carrots and purple cabbage
1 heaping cup broccoli flowerets
1/4 to 1/3 can honey roasted peanuts
Poppyseed dressing
Craisins (optional)

Mix together coleslaw mix, broccoli and peanuts. Add enough dressing to make it creamy. Add craisins, if desired. Serve immediately.

Notes:

• Dorothy said that frozen peas (thawed) could be added. I chose not to.
• I added some craisins for a little color, texture and taste.
  
• When I was in Topeka, I got Panera fat-free poppyseed salad dressing at Hy-Vee grocery store. It was delicious, though a little pricey. I couldn't find it locally. I combined Brianna's poppyseed dressing and a fat free poppyseed dressing from Maple Grove Farms of Vermont, using equal amounts to cut down on the fat and calories.

If you're looking for Irish quick bread recipes, click here for Irish Soda Bread and Cheddar Apple Scones, two recipes I've used for 4-H foods meetings. There are also some other St. Patty's Day snack ideas for your March 17 celebration.

Top O' the Mornin' to you! Enjoy!

The Incredible Shrinking Doll

Grandpa Fritzemeier knows some pretty amazing magic tricks. But Kinley seems to have a bit of magic, too. She's making one doll shrink before our very eyes while another one grows.

Here are a couple of dolls on January 1.

Our little magician waves her hands and feet. (That's one of her best skills.)

And she says the magic words! "Abracadabra!"

It's magic! Just 10 weeks later (March 11), one doll is getting smaller and smaller. And the other one is getting bigger and bigger!

I think the magic is in the smile.

"Dressed" for Success

There's a song in the musical, Annie, that reminds us of an important accessory for our overall "look" for the day. It says, "You're never fully dressed without a smile."

Who cares what they're wearing
On Main Street of Saville Row
It's what you wear from ear to ear
And not from head to toe.
That matters

Remember you're never fully dressed
Though you may wear the best
You're never fully dressed
Without a smile.

This smile says it all.

Or maybe this smile says it all.

Or it could be this one.

Or it could be found on this Grandpa's face as he has a conversation with a special little girl.

We spent the weekend in Topeka for Kinley's baptism. Stay tuned: There may be another photo or two I'll share from this weekend.

I won't share all 129. I promise. But I do miss this sweet little face this morning.

That face makes me smile.

Beef & Potato Soup

With the weather making a brief return to colder temperatures, I figured there was time to sneak in another soup recipe for the weekend.

And another bonus? This recipe is designed for the slow cooker. That makes it handy to get the ingredients going and then forget them for awhile, leaving you free to watch basketball, read a book, clean house or _____________ . (You fill in the blank!)

This recipe is from the Healthy and Delicious magazine December/January issue. The Taste of Home test kitchen pared down the original recipe from 445 calories per serving to 327 and also reduced the fat by more than half.

Jill and I were on the same page - literally. I made the soup and then found out that she'd tried it, too. It got good reviews all around.

Enjoy the soup and especially your weekend!

Makeover Beef & Potato Soup
A Slow Cooker Recipe

Prep: 30 minutes. Cook Time: 6 1/2 hours
Yield: 10 servings (3 quarts)

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cans (14.5 oz. each) reduced-sodium beef broth, divided
5 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
3 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp. dried parsley flakes
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. pepper
12 oz. reduced fat processed cheese (Velveeta), cubed
1 1/2 cups 2% milk
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Combine flour and 1 can broth until smooth. Add to beef mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Transfer to a 5-quart slow cooker. Stir in potatoes, carrots, celery, seasonings and remaining broth. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until vegetables are tender. Stir in cheese and milk. Cover, cook 30 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Just before serving, stir in sour cream.

If it's too thick to suit you, add a little more milk.

Nutrition Facts: 1 1/4 cups equals 327 calories: 11 g fat (5 g saturated); 61 mg. cholesterol, 832 mg sodium, 32 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 25 g protein.

Serve with crackers and fresh veggies.

Innocent Until Proven Guilty

They look guilty, don't they? They are leaving the scene of the crime through the point of entry. It looks like they were caught red-handed.

While these two culprits may have taken advantage of the breaking and entering portal, Randy doesn't believe they are the masterminds behind the "home" invasion.

Three mornings ago, Randy noticed that a chunk of siding was gone on the wash house. A portion of a lighted Christmas tree had been pulled through the opening and dismantled. (So much for that part of my outdoor holiday display.)

The next morning, the south side of the shed was littered with debris, marking an unsuccessful bid to gain entry.

When that didn't work, the wily criminals shifted their attention to the north side of their quarry, where they vandalized our property.

The object of their shenanigans? A sack of cat food inside the wash house.

The instigator (or instigators) remain at large, despite our best efforts and a hefty investment in canned tuna.

So far, the tuna has proven irresistible to a feline friend or two. Though guilty of gluttony, we didn't make The Professor spend his life behind bars.

We have since stashed the cat food in a metal can to dissuade further breaking and entering. We have questioned the witnesses. But with their bellies full, they aren't talking.

We are thinking the robber or robbers wore a mask.

Image from wikipedia

However, our culprit has not yet been apprehended. But we are armed with additional cans of tuna and what my Grandpa Neelly would have called a humane trap. (That is another story for another day!)

Swan Song

Uninvited guests can wreak havoc at a party. No Kansas wheat farmer wants to provide a never-ending buffet for tens of thousands of geese. But, for a couple of weeks, migrating geese evidently saw an all-you-can-eat buffet sign flashing green from the heavens. And they said, "Don't mind if I do!"

Farmers would try to send them on their way by honking their horns and making more drivebys than a police cruiser trying to clean up a shady neighborhood. But about as soon as farmers moseyed on down the road to the next location, the geese circled back for another taste of tender green wheat.

While hunters might have enjoyed the influx of geese in Central Kansas, wheat farmers prefer the feathered beasts find their buffet elsewhere, since they can eat a young wheat field to bare ground faster than a teenage boy and his friends can plow through a bag of chips.

But along with the geese, we had some more unusual visitors to our farm. A group of six larger birds also came to call. They weren't too sociable. Like a shy junior high girl at a middle school dance, they tended to stay away from the crowd. (And since I don't have fancy camera equipment, the photos aren't the best, but I still wanted to share a glimpse of our unusual visitors.)

They were also a bit camera shy. Cars down our country road had them scurrying away.

First, the swans made themselves at home in the middle of 80 acres about 3/4 of a mile south of our house. They were bigger than geese, so at first, we wondered if they were the whooping cranes that migrate through our area near the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge. But binoculars revealed no black wing tips, so we were puzzled.

By the time thousands of geese arrived at the same field, the mystery birds moved north a field, keeping to themselves.

They brought a little birdwatching traffic to our country road. And a neighbor confirmed what Randy and I had discovered after a little internet sleuthing. The birds were swans, and, more specifically, tundra swans.

Tundra swans? This mild Kansas winter hasn't provided much snow or ice. They should have gotten the invitation last year, when we had plenty of white stuff to make them feel at home.

But, instead, they came this year and stayed for three weeks or so before exiting with as little fanfare as they arrived.