What a wonderful year it has been….my first year of blogging! Just a few months before I started, I didn’t even know what a blog was! My sister Sherry from Prairie Home got me started and boy am I glad she did! It has been so fun sharing with y’all the things that have been on my heart…. hoping to bless you, sweet blog-girls, and yet it was my heart that was blessed by all of the welcoming, encouraging, heart-melting comments you have showered me with. Thank you!I feel like I know so many of you, and yet we have never met in person! And some of you I have met…..what a delight that was, to see you face to beautiful face! It’s hard to explain this bond I feel with you all. As a homemaker (of 30 years) a wife and a mama of four (two boys, two girls) , I know the joys and the frustrations, the ups and downs of life, the bad hair days and worse….I’ve read your blogs and understand your feelings….I’ve been there, done that, got the T-shirt! I feel like we are all on this ever important, adventurous, keeper-of-the-home journey, together.

Recently, I just happened to stumble upon some comments about me on a chat-forum, (it was surreal…like overhearing people talk about you…I was like, hey! they’re talking about me! Little ole RuthAnn! What in the world?) and I had to chuckle when the question arose…”Is she for real?”. Who me? Okay, can I set the record straight …I am just a regular mom…..I have to fight clutter, clean out closets, figure out what I want to make for dinner, empty the trash…. I have bad hair days and struggle with PMS …. etc….. I just happen to have a sincere passion for the home and family and yes, I do decorate “over-the-top” a bit ( this was also a comment), but that’s what I love!!!! YA HOOOO! (y’all, don’t ya know, I love decorating so much I want to marry it!).


I grew up wanting to live on Main Street at Disneyland, but they won’t let me, so I’ve done the next best thing by giving my home sort of a whimsical-Disney-style spin. I want my home to be the happiest place on earth for my family…..it’s not so much about the “stuff” as it is about the feeling that I try to accomplish. Feelings of love, a sense of belonging, comfort and joy! I also wanted to be a pie-bakin’ mama, so five years ago I taught myself. Oh, I had a few flops….but with practice it has become easier! It is such a scrumptious feeling of true womanhood to pull a bubbling, golden-crusted pie, hot from the oven, and set it on my counter to cool….it just makes me feel so June Cleaver-ish! (can I be her when I grow up?)
Most of the comments on this above mentioned “chat-forum” were very complimentary, but there were a few that had a problem with my blog. One gal said that I talked too much about God. Bless her heart, she didn’t know that my faith in God was the secret to my joy! Jesus is my life, without Him, I am nothing.

Jesus is everything wonderful.
He is the reason joy-bells ring in my home. He gives me strength…courage… comfort… hope and a future…. protection… provision… creativity and passion… love and redemption… eternity with Him in Heaven. He lights my path. He is the lover of my soul… my hero… my rescuer… my healer. He is the best of what there is in life. Who wouldn’t want that? And why on earth would I not share this great and spectacular news with all of you dear sweet girls in blogland?

“For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…” Romans 1:16

I do hope that whatever faith you hold onto, that you feel welcome here. My goal is to share with you whatever I have learned ( and am still learning) as a woman, a wife, a mother, a homemaker, and a friend, and to give you a glimpse inside my home and life through my blog, in hopes that you would find encouragement, and motivation to turn your heart toward home.

I am so thankful that I’ve been given the opportunity to share a slice of my life with you through Warm Pie, Happy Home, and thankful too, for all of you who read it! So here is the good news! One of you gals is going to win my One Year Anniversary give-away….a package of 7 goodies!!!! Here is what the package includes….

1. A fabulous candle from the ever wonderful Warm Glow Candle Company! I picked this up in Indiana on my trip. The fragrance is Evening Mocha and is delicious!

2. A string of Pearls, so you too can feel June Cleaver-ish, and to remind you how precious and beautiful you are!

3. As a “Country Mother” myself, I am pleased to present this dear, old-timey, cookbook by Jane Watson Hopping. It’s filled with stories, poems, vintage pictures, and yummy farm-wife recipes…….take a peek….


It’s the kind of book you want to curl up with in your Jammies sipping a cup of Hot Chocolate with marshmallows!

This next set of three books are ones that I co-authored with my sister-in-law Linda. (Unfortunately, that was several years ago and are no longer in print. You can however, go on Amazon and find them very inexpensively.)

4. Dusty’s Beary Tales (my other sister-in-law did the illustrations in this children’s book…she is an amazing artist…check out her new blog at Mara Mattia Art. Please welcome her to blogland and tell her I sent you!
5. 101 Ideas For Making Family Memories

6. Giving Love A Memory

Take a peek inside these books…..



And last but not least….

7. An adorable apron from Heavenly Hostess!

It has a voluptuous bow in the back and it’s also lined!

A cute apron and a string of pearls,

is just what a gal needs to perk up her day!

If you would like to have a chance at winning these goodies,
all you have to do is leave a comment describing
your family’s
favorite Holiday tradition.
I may share some of these ideas in a future post, so if you leave a comment, I will regard it as your permission to use it.(If you don’t have a blog, please leave me your email address so I can contact you if you’re the winner.)
November 8th will be the last day to enter this give-away. I will then put all of your names in my favorite mixing bowl and draw one name at random. The winner will be announced on my next post.

Here are a few answers to questions I’ve been asked:
1. The Bible translation that I read is usually Amplified, but I also read New Living, The Message, New King James and NIV.
2. Regarding the Snickerdoodle Recipe, (or any cookie recipe) do not melt the butter! It will make the cookies spread out thin and flat. I chop the butter into large chunks and cream it with the sugar in my Kitchen Aid mixer. Also make sure you chill the dough 20 minutes in freezer, or else the dough will be too sticky to handle.
3. My story of moving to the Ozarks is in an earlier post…in the search engine at the top of my blog, type in Branson Missouri and scroll down toward the bottom to find out how we moved from California to Southern Missouri!
4. My camera is a Sony, Cyber Shot 12x zoom, Model no. DSC-H5. I also keep a smaller camera in my purse, it’s aFuji, Finepix Z10.
5. The phrase in my great-room dining area is “Come Gather At Our Table”.
6. As long as pumpkins are not bruised, they should last the whole autumn season.
7. Yes, please do add a link from your blog to mine!! I encourage you to add Warm Pie, Happy Home to your list of blog-reads. There are a lot of Mama’s out there that need encouragement, and a pat on the back!
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If I missed your question, please ask again!
God Bless all of you Cutie-Pies!
Hugs!
RuthAnn

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