Howdy Sugar Pie and Happy Easter to you! I hope all is well with you darlin’! Aren’t you so excited that it’s finally spring!! Although it was a little hard to tell here in the Ozarks with all the snow flurries that were swirling down from the sky last week! The only thing that’s budding with tiny white blossoms are my plum trees…and what a wonderful sight that is!

The birds have been chirping every mornin’ and are busy building their nests…ahhhh! Springtime is filled with such joyful bliss!

Even though there certainly is beauty in winter, spring and summer just thrill my heart like a kid running through the sprinklers! The warmth! The green on the trees! The flowers! The fruit so juicy and sweet! Yay for sunshine and blue skies! Yay for the goodness of our Lord! I love that God thought of seasons! They refresh our spirit with new sights, new hope and new beauty. The seasons also prove to us that God is faithful in His tender loving care. Last year at this time my daughter-in-love was quite ill and so was my brother. I’m happy to report that both are well and healthy! Thank the good Lord! And more news on the happy-home-front is that my daughter is set to give birth to Polly June in a few weeks, my first grand-daughter! And, my daughter-in-love Kimmy will give birth to my third grand-son at the end of June! That will make a total of 4 grand-babies for me! Ahhh! New life! Springtime and Easter are all about NEW LIFE!

In celebration of this brand new season I’ve made a few springy touches around my home…here’s a peek at some of my Springtime decorating: You may remember seeing my vintage yard-bird-chicken before…well I think I’ve decorated with her for every season now. This time she’s being followed by her new baby chickies.  I love to see mama hens with their chicks! They are so protective of their little ones! It reminds me of one of my favorite scripture verses:

“He will cover you with his feathers.

He will shelter you with his wings.

His faithful promises are your armor and protection”. Psalm 91:4,5

Awake, awake, it’s springtime, the gentle breezes blow,

the sunshine whispers to the flowers, awake, awake and grow!

So raise our happy voices as bells of Easter ring,

and say with sunshine, chicks and flowers,

‘Awake, awake, it’s spring!'”

~ American School Songbook 1944

Decorating with a touch of storybook whimsy makes my heart sparkle…

…here little fuzzy chickies find a cozy spot to wait for mama under the old berry crate

that’s filled with happy, sugared Easter eggs.

Miss Daisy’s hat…a vintage treasure from many springtime’s ago!

(“Driving Miss Daisy” Love that movie!)

Who doesn’t love a chocolate bunny? This one looks yummy, and it’s calorie free since it’s just pretend…heehee!

“I got a chocolate rabbit, For an Easter treat,

A great big chocolate rabbit ,Good enough to eat.

So I ate his ears on Sunday, His nose I finished Monday.

Tuesday I nibbled on his feet. I ate his tail on Wednesday

Thursday I kept on, By Friday he was going,

Saturday he was gone.

Oh, I loved my chocolate rabbit, From the moment that he came,

And if I get another one, I’ll love him just the same.” ~Unknown

Fresh sunflowers light up the room and adds lots-O-happy-happy-happy along with my farmy goodies!

I have to say that this old rusty shovel on my mantle makes me chuckle! If the previous owner only knew that it would be the centerpiece of someones spring decorating they wouldn’t believe it! I’m sure there have been some folks that have visited my home that probably have had that same thought… Huh! Well I’ll be! I wonder why there’s an old, crusty shovel on the  fireplace mantle? Doesn’t that belong in the tool shed? Heehee! I love that old shovel because it tells a story!  It speaks to my heart about the American way! Hard work…living off the land…flowers around the picket fence…vegetables in the garden…harvesting in the fall…enjoying God’s creation in the great outdoors… by golly! I am so thankful my hubby lets me decorate with fun junk!

The last line tells it all…”Love paid the ransom for me”. Jesus is our rescuer and our redeemer! Oh how thankful I am that Jesus loved us so much that He laid down His life for us so that we could go to heaven to be with Him one day! So on Easter we celebrate His Resurrection and the  new life He gives us when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. (If you are reading this and you don’t know God…or you are not absolutely sure you will go to heaven when your time on earth is over click here).

Our life here on earth is not all there is. There is so much more in store for those who have given their heart to Jesus!

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE! CLICK HERE!)

“‘It is finished!” He cried.

And the great Creator went home.

(He ’s not resting though. Word has it that His tireless hands

are preparing a city so glorious even the angels get goose bumps upon seeing it.

Considering what He has done so far, that is one creation I plan to see.)” ~ Max Lucado

Well, darlin’ as you can see I’m not shy about my love for the Lord! He is my life. Jesus is everything wonderful. I share my belief with you because He is the most important thing to me. Without Him I am nothing. All the homemaking tips and decorating ideas are meaningless without Him. He is the reason my home is happy! I share my faith with you because if by chance you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus I want you to! I cannot imagine going through life without God. I don’t want you to miss out! He gives us love, strength, joy, comfort, peace and hope for a glorious future! Who wouldn’t want that? He created sweet, wonderful you! He knows you best and loves you most! Once again, Click Here if you want to know our amazing God.

Well honey, I’m wishin’ you a happy

church-goin’-Lord praisin’

hymn singin’-egg-huntin’-flower-filled Easter

with lots of chocolate bunnies and little kids giggles!

God bless your darlin’ heart!

You are loved!

Aunt Ruthie

61 Comments   Add a Comment

Well HOWDY-DO! Sugar Pie Darlin’! On my last post I talked about hoedowns and handpies…such a wonderful and delightful combination! Don’t you think we need a come-back of those old-timey, wholesome ways for families to have fun?!  The boys in their farmer overalls and the gals in flower-printed country dresses a-whirlin’-and-a-twirlin’ on the old barn floor! Yee Haw! Yup, back in the day, Hoedown’s and Hand-pies were a weekly tradition, during the warm months of the year, on my hubby’s grandparents farm, in Bennington, Oklahoma. I just love thinking about it!

I love it when my mama-in-law Ruth tells me her back-in-the-day stories about her life on the farm in southern Oklahoma. This photo shows part of her family (there were a total of nine kids) from left to right is; Hazel-Marie, little Frances-Virdeen, Papa Maynard Cox, Little Neoma-Ruth (my mama-in-law), Mama Jennie Mae Archer Cox and big brother Roy-Ray. Frances and Ruth are wearing homemade dresses made from flour sacks. Ruth remembers mama taking her and her sisters to Jake Brown’s Mercantile to look at the variety of patterned cotton sacks of flour to pick out the color that they liked best.  Then after emptying the flour into a bin, Mama would wash, starch and sew the flour sack fabric into sweet and simple farmgirl dresses.

As I said in my last post Mama Jennie Mae was very resourceful. Mama Ruth told me that whenever anyone became ill or had sprained a  muscle, she would go into the woods to gather herbs and certain plants to make her own home remedies. How in the world did she know if the plant would help the person or make them sicker?? Perhaps the fact that her papa was 1/2 Cherokee Indian that she learned early on, living off the land, which ones had healing properties and which ones to stay away from.

She would bring the gathered leaves or twigs into her kitchen and add them to simmering water on the wood stove to make a broth, tea or ointment depending on the ailment. Back then folks had to rely on home remedies to get well or wait a week or two until the doctor came to town. Today we have the blessing of medical care ’round the clock! Even though the world has certainly advanced immensely in the field of medicine since the 1930’s I would rather take something natural, if possible, to help heal or prevent an ailment. That’s why I was so happy to have made a recent discovery for what some are calling “the miracle food”!

Have you ever discovered something or found a product that you are so thrilled with that you get a little giddy over it ...then you tell your friends about it only to hear their reply “Oh yeah, I’ve been using that for a few years now”. What?? A few years? Where have I been? And how come nobody told me about it?? Well, just in case you haven’t heard (but you probably have!), my new favorite natural product is EXTRA VIRGIN COCONUT OIL! Have you heard about it? Just say “no” to appease me!  Hee-Hee! Well, I really do love this stuff so much….yeah, I kinda wanna marry it.

There are so many benefits to Extra Virgin Coconut Oil! According to Dr. Oz and other medical doctors it has been shown that:

~It increases good HDL Cholesterol

~Strengthens immune system

~Helps stabilize blood sugar

~ It’s Anti-bacterial & Anti-fungal–can use like Neosporin

~Aids in healing diaper rash

~Increases metabolism to loose weight

~Can help with Dementia and Alzheimer’s

~Can increase mental alertness and brain function

~Helps fade wrinkles

~It can heal blemishes

~Makes your hair silky soft

~It gives you energy

~Improves heart health

AND SO MUCH MORE!

The experts say that Coconut Oil is the healthiest oil to cook with, even more so than Olive Oil.

Look for this yummy veggie recipe using Coconut Oil here on Pinterest.

You can stir a tablespoon into oatmeal, coffee or tea…

Spread it on toast with jam…

Bake it into your muffins…(the same amount that you would use for the shortening or oil in the recipe)

Or you can eat it from a spoon! Okay so here’s the thing…I gag very easily…I’m a big, fat gag-baby if you wanna know… but I can actually eat it with something sweet on top…my husband and daughter, not so much…they cringe at this idea! (Now who’s the baby!) There is a slight coconut taste, and it is oil in a solid form but turns to liquid immediately in your mouth or on your hands. Just a spoonful of sugar (or Fruit Loops) makes the medicine (Coconut Oil) go down! Heehee!

You could get creative and top it with chocolate chips and an almond for a healthy version of Almond Joy!

But my favorite way to use Extra Virgin Coconut Oil is to use it as a moisturizer on my face at night before I go to bed.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT!

I cannot even believe how smooth my skin feels in the morning!!

You just need a tiny bit…about the size of a Cheerio, pretty much…then rub it in your hands, it will liquefy immediately… smooth it on your face, lips, arms, hands & feet. I purchased little travel containers at Walmart to keep some with me in my purse in place of lotion on my hands or as a lip balm.

84 Comments   Add a Comment