Blueberry Pie

Nanny J and her husband gave us a ton of fresh picked blueberries. So, I've been pinteresting {is that a word?} looking for yummy recipes.

On Friday, I made my first pie...ever. I was a bit nervous but it turned out great {I thought so anyways}. It was delicious and let's just say I ate a bit more than I should have... thank goodness I have a date with my running shoes this morning.

I found my recipe at the fabulous Inspired Taste. They even have easy instructions for how to create a lattice pattern for your top crust. I've bookmarked their website and have already found more yummy recipes to try. Check it out!

Blueberry Pie

You will need the following:

• Pie dough for top and bottom 9-inch {I used the Pilsbury crust}
• 2/3 cup to 3/4 cup granulated sugar,depending on sweetness of berries
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon peel {I felt like Ina Garten using my fancy lemon zester}
• 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 6 cups fresh blueberries (about 2 pounds)
• 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small squares
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon sugar, for garnish

Directions:

1. Roll out half of the pie dough to fit an 8- or 9-inch pie dish.
2. Stir sugar, cornstarch, lemon peel, allspice, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Add blueberries and gently toss to combine. Transfer blueberry filling to prepared pie crust. 
3. Roll out second half of pie dough. This is where it gets more complicated depending on the type of design you want for the top crust. I used the lattice design {see Inspired Taste for a great tutorial}.
4. Trim dough strips to 3/4-inch of the edge of dish. Fold edges of strips and bottom dough underneath itself, creating a thicker border that rests on the lip of the dish. Crimp edges {I used a small fork to make a fun design along the edges}. Dot butter over the open areas of the lattice.
5. Make egg wash by whisking egg yolk and cream together then brush over pie dough. Sprinkle tablespoon of coarse sugar over crust. Refrigerate pie 20 minutes or freeze for 5 minutes before baking.
6. Bake on 400 degrees for 20 minutes, then turn oven down to 350 degrees and continue baking for 35-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown. 
7. Cool 2-3 hours before cutting to allow filling to set.
8. Enjoy! 

Happy Baking!

 

For The Grandparents

I am in the process of trying to organize and order pictures. I am so far behind. I decided to use the photobooks from Shutterfly. We've purchased them before and loved them. I plan to do a book each year of Mary Grace's life. I thought I'd give some happiness to the grandparent's day by sharing her photobook of her first year.

So, grands, enjoy! Oh, if you click 'View larger' it will take you to the Shutterfly site where you can also purchase a copy for yourself. {If you want one, call me first- I have promo codes :) }

Click here to view this photo book larger

You'll love Shutterflys award-winning photo books. Try it today.

My Favorite Things

It's been a while, my friends, since I've posted a Favorite Things list. So, I thought I'd do a fun little post of my latest happies instead of the usual Friday Five.

One. Brookhills Church App
I love David Platt and the message he brings. His books are amazing {especially Radical} and his study Follow Me is one of my all time favorites. I recently came across the app for his church, The Church at Brookhills. It includes a daily reading assignment, explanation notes for the passages, and they also put up their weekly sermon. It's the next best thing to being able to attend his services.

Two. Land O Lakes Cinnamon Sugar Butter
Heaven in a plastic tub, I tell you. I've eaten this with toast every. single. morning for like two weeks now. So good!

Three. Vacation Bible School
It's that time of year again and VBS is in full swing at our little church. I have had a blast this week with my sweet girls. It's always a good time when the focus is on the gospel!

Four. Gel Nails
I wish I had purchased a kit sooner. I love them- they last for weeks and stay super shiny. I've tried three colors so far- a cool blue, hot pink, and a neutral shimmer pink. While I'm usually not into wild colors, the blue is my new fave :)

Five. Chacos
I have my eye one this little pair for our upcoming mission trip.

Six. Water with lemon, lime, and a little salt
Sounds gross, I know but it's how I love my water! I've been trying to keep a count on my water intake, since I never drink enough fluid.

Seven. McDonalds Has Arrived In Butler
Ya'll, our small town is growing. I never thought I'd see the day when we'd get a McDonalds. And yes, I was one of the nerds who kept track of the opening date and made sure I swung by on the big day :)

Eight. Gain Sunflower and Sunshine
Love this scent! It's a great change from the usual scents I buy.

Nine. Rain Boots
Another last minute item on my mission trip list is a new pair of rain boots. I have this lovely pair picked out and adore the fun pattern and pops of yellow.

Ten. Hello Genius books by Michael Dahl
We discovered this series during the Summer Reading Program at the library. Mary Grace looooves them and I can't wait to add our own copies to our home library. They are perfect for her age- not to simple/babyish and not advanced. The books teach life skills and manners with cute animals as the stars of the stories. I highly recommend them!

Let's Take A Walk

We are crossing off items on our Summer Bucket List!

"cheeeeeeeeese"

A Summer thunderstorm cloud was our cue to head home for a nap

Girl Talk

We had the privledge of having this sweet girl spend the day with us yesterday. She and Mary Grace are big buddies and it is so sweet watching them play together.

I was getting lunch ready and overheard them 'chatting' away. I found them perched in the window sill in deep conversation. Precious, I tell you!

40 Days

Today marks forty days until our team leaves for Nicaragua.

For the next forty days, our team will be in deep prayer and I'd like to ask you to come in agreement with us and join our team as a prayer partner.

I will be praying and fasting, asking the Lord to go before us and soften hearts so that the people will be receptive to our message. After all, we can only share the good news- the Holy Spirit moves the heart.

I will also be in prayer for myself and my team- that the Spirit will move in our midst, start a revival in our hearts, and draw us into deeper waters in preparation for the mission work He is already orchestrating for us to complete.

I'm praying that Jesus will put His Word and wisdom in my head, His love in my heart, and His words in my mouth. That in all I do, I represent Him and His message.

Kind Words Are Like Honey

If you've been following The Small Town Life much lately, then you know that my blog is now a regular column in our local newspaper - The Choctaw Sun Advocate.

During the busyness of our beach vacation, I wasn't able to get my column up and emailed to my editor in time for publication. So, last week The Small Town Life column was on hiatus.

My little one is sick and during the hustle and bustle of doctors visits and a late night trip to the ER, I didn't get a chance to pick up a paper yesterday.

I'm glad that I didn't get my paper yesterday. See, while running an errand at the post office this morning, a sweet little lady recognized me as 'The Small Town Life' girl. Her compliments of my column were the ray of sunshine my day needed.

Thank you. I didn't catch your name, but your encouraging words are some I will not soon forget.

This sweet lady was actually returning a paper that was misplaced in her mailbox by accident. She opened up the paper to look at my column for the week {Jesus Wrecked My Life}.

That's why I love my small town life. If your paper is accidentally put in someone else's box, even though some consider it a small thing, you can rest assured that it will be sent back {in this case, hand delivered to the post office for proper return}.

The lady mentioned the weekly Soundoff and how someone had commented about my column. For those of you who are unfamiliar with our small town paper, we have a Soundoff section. It's sort of like facebook in print where people vent about their concerns and frustrations.

Needless to say I cringed at the thought of what someone had written for the Soundoff section. My glass-half-empty mind immediately feared the worst. Oh, was I wrong. Nestled among the usual complaints, was a little piece of love just for me.

Thank you. I will never know who wrote this, but thank you. Your sweet comment warmed my soul and reminded me why I took on this column.

To inspire. To teach. To encourage. To share my journey in the hopes that it may in some way benefit you.

Thank you.

And I promise, The Small Town Life isn't going anywhere.

Jesus Wrecked My Life

If you and I had talked one year ago, if we had sat down together over a cup of coffee, if I had poured out my heart to you, I would have told you one thing: Jesus is wrecking my life.

One  year ago, it seemed as if Jesus was wrecking my life. My life of comfort. My life of complacency. 

My life. What I didn't realize then was one simple truth: If you follow Jesus, then my friend, it's no longer your life. It's His life.

I gave my life to Christ in the Fall of 2004 and I've loved Jesus since I first met Him on that sweltering August night. I've loved Him, but I haven't always followed Him- not in the way we are called to follow.

You see, I had a dream of how I wanted my life to go, and instead of letting Jesus lead, I told Him my plans and wanted Him to follow along. I wanted comfort, success, and happiness. I wanted to do things my own way, and I wanted Jesus to bless my decisions. But all the while Jesus was calling me to give my life away to Him, to live a life marked by sacrifice for Him, to experience a deep joy in Him.

Last Summer, I thought Jesus was wrecking my life. Stone after stone came tumbling down as the life I envisioned was painfully contrasted with the life He was asking me to live. And against everything the world said I should do, I chose His life for me. I chose to follow. You see, friend, I fell in love with Jesus years ago and though I loved my life, I loved Him more. I wanted to give my life away to following Him.

I began praying one word- anything. Anything, Lord, I will do anything you ask of me. Things started changing. I was changing. My motives we no longer rooted in seeking out comfort or my own desires in life. Instead, my motives were rooted in a deep longing to bring Him glory, to know Him more, and to serve Him. 

I had labored for years building 'my life'. I watched as stone after stone fell away. My career, which was always one of the most important things in my life, suddenly took a back seat. My outlook on material things in life drastically changed and I lost the desire to chase the American dream. Jesus placed in me a love for others, for the least of these, that I had so tragically lacked before. He began molding in me a heart for missions.

My heart was bleeding and I couldn't make it stop. So I was praying and willing and dreaming of living for heaven instead of the American dream, and it was changing everything. And strangely, I was okay with that.

For years, I was a child of God living in Egypt. Then I made the decision to leave Egypt and I spent one year wandering through the desert, allowing Jesus to change my heart. The desert grew my faith in Him as I watched God provide in amazing ways. Jesus was the balm my hurting heart needed. In all my effort to build my life on my own, I never realized I was wounded. I needed a healing only Jesus could offer.

Hindsight is 20/20. At the time I felt as if Jesus was wrecking my life. Looking back, though, I realize that I wrecked my own life. Jesus, in His infinite love, saw me. He loved me. He had compassion on me. He helped me. 

I wrecked my life by building it around myself and my desires, rather than letting Him be the focal point. The end result looked somewhat like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Jesus came in, tore down the mess I had made, and started anew. He put each brick in its proper place, and set all things straight.

Now, one year later as I cross over Jordan and leave this desert season of my life, I can see that what He has built in me is more beautiful than anything I could have ever done on my own. He is truly life more beautiful.

I will face desert seasons again in life. But instead of fearing change, I will see it as an opportunity for God to rework my life for the better- for His purpose and glory.

After all, sweet friend, our life is not our own, it's His life.

 

Beach Trip {Destin}

I left my camera at home {terrible mommy, right?}. We improvised and used our phones to capture as much as we could. We had a fabulous time! Mary Grace is part mermaid, I swear. She loves the water and the sand. On our first full day at the beach, she stayed out from 10:30 - 5:00 {with the exception of an hour for lunch}. Our days were filled with beach fun, family, yummy food, and of course shopping.

Day 1 - She couldn't wait to get to the beach!

Day 2 - Beach time with Granny

Sandcastle fun!

Love my little beach baby!

Ice Cream with Mommy while everyone heads to graduation.

The Disney Store is Mary Grace's Happy Place :)

Day 3: Chillin' in the shade

Emerald waters

Day 3: Dinner out at Old Bay Steamer. Yum!

 There you have it, a quick recap of our beach trip. I am already dreaming of heading back. Oh well, the pool will suffice for now :)

Happy Thursday

 

Summer Reading List {2014}

Summer Reading 2014 by bsjames on Polyvore

A Rainy Day

It's raining on the lake today, so we are spending time indoors in our jammies.

So, how do the James girls spend a rainy summer day?

First, we started the day off by having breakfast on the porch and watching the rain.

After breakfast, we had a little messy fun making our homemade sourdough bread.

{Flour Face}

{She's saying "cheeeeeese"}

 

Then, we spent time painting happies for Daddy, and cards for the grands.

We thought of a fun way to welcome Daddy home....

We ate popcorn and watched Mickey Mouse.

And now the little one is napping and I just finished my quiet time with Jesus.

Later, we are headed to town to do a quick errand, then maybe a little shopping for new hair bows at the Four Seasons.

And if the thunder goes away and we are left with a nice, light shower- the mini and I will have a mommy/daughter date to dance in the rain and splash in the puddles.

Happy Rainy Day