Go Anakin Skywalker!

STAR WARS ROCKS! Okay, Sara...compose yourself. Star wars is amazing and our entire family is being sucked in to a big, black, hole of light sabers and Jedi knights. And I have to say: we love it! I guess you can consider this a Monday movie review from Sara's Perspective. Since Meghan will be reviewing mostly old movies, I think I will do the new movies. So here it is!

Star Wars III: Revenge of The Sith

Rated: PG-13

Despite the rating (which is well deserved), this movie is fantastic. It is well made, beautifully acted out, and the storyline ties everything together. The parts that are PG-13 should be skipped for the younger viewers.

Good Parts:

The good and evil part is great: Obi-Wan and other jedi's put themselves in harms way for the good of the people, Anakin tells Mace Windu about Chancellor Palpatine and offers to help in any way, and also is passionate about saving Padme's life. After Padme reveals to him that she is pregnant (and offers to hide the baby away) Anakin smiles (My favorite part) and states, "Our baby is a blessing." When Anakin tells Yoda about his nightmarish visions of Padmé's death, the Jedi Master responds, "The fear of loss is a path to the dark side." About mortality, he teaches, "Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into The Force. Mourn them, do not. Miss them, do not. Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed, that is. Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose." Unfortunately, Anakin doesn't heed Yoda's advice. Which leads us to:

Bad Parts:

Anakin is tempted much like Eve in the bible, and gives in to that temptation (a greed for power). The scene with Anakin being defeated by Obiwan is definitely not for young viewers. I will not go into too much detail, but it is most definitely not for younger viewers. Just click skip scene and you'll be fine!

Summary:

Besides all the bad parts, this is a wonderful movie! It is amazingly done, but you do have to watch for those parts where it would be good for a ice cream break! Have fun, and oh yeah: may the force be with you!

Menu Plan Monday...sort of!

Here is the menu plan that I made up for the week...before I knew my husband was going to paint my kitchen...and then he started it....but had to stop suddenly because he sold his car...suddenly....so.....everything is out of my kitchen and all over the place! LOL I'm going to desperately try to stick to this menu...even amidst the chaos....for health reasons as well as financial reasons....looks like I'll start the oatmeal tonight in the crockpot, mix the ingredients for the pumpkin bread tonight and bake it before hubby wakes up...and crockpot the chicken cacciatore as well....hopefully, all painting will be done by tomorrow night! This is a crazy week to begin with...Ronnie's 7th birthday is Thursday, and he has to see the surgeon to get his post-surgery checkup and x-rays...then we're having a big birthday/Steeler football party on Sunday that I need to prepare food ahead of time for, but... here's the menu plan for this week!

~Menu Plan Monday~

Monday:
veggie omlets/ cheesy eggs
potatoes

P.B. J., yogart, apples

Cauliflower cheese soup
garlic bread

Tuesday:
oatmeal with raisons

GF pumpkin bread, yogart and fruit

Chicken Cacciatore with GF pasta and salad

Wednesday:

Buttermilk Soup (a recipe from the Gr. Depression using buttermilk, vanilla and tapioca) with fruit

egg, cheese, GF pasta casserole, and salad

Deer chops, peppers & mushrooms, sweet/sour red cabbage, oven fried potatoes

Thursday: ***Ronnie's 7th Birthday! He picks the menu***

Cocoa crisp cereal, with bananas

Arby's sandwiches with 'horsey sauce'

Chicken and brown rice with steamed carrots

Homemade chocolate custard

Friday:

GF blueberry pancakes

Kefir smoothie

Brown Rice/Lentil casserole with salad

Chuckie Cheese for a pizza birthday party

Saturday:

oatmeal custard with raisons

veggie cheese omlets with GF toast

GF impossible cheeseburger pie ( with ground deer) and salad

Sunday: (Ronnie's party)

GF cereal with bananas ( we ALWAYS have cereal on Sundays)

crockpot chicken and rice soup

Menu for party:

veggies and dip, spinach dip, homemade baked beans, hotdogs, broccoli/cauliflower salad, homemade 'hotpockets', chocolate cake and icecream!

I'm going to TRY and find the time to make the shanghai egg rolls for the party, too...but wo't knock myself out if I run out of time! Getting together some more menu ideas for more meatless meals....my goal is to have 3 days out of 7 be meatless...and use less meat in our meals as well. I keep telling my husband that we simply need to change our thinking to " meat is a side dish"...he just laughs at me....and really appreciates the times he gets red meat! Be blessed! ~Sue~

Sabbath Worship

What a wonderful morning at church! Worship was inspired and the sermon was certainly God inspired and very thought provoking....as usual.

I came home in a state of worship...and spent the afternoon in the kitchen listening to this song on repeat while making dinner. A friend introduced me to the Christian artist Chris Tomlin...and I am continuously ushered into a state of worship instantly listening to him....God has truly annointed him and his lyrics and has used his music to minister to me over and over again....such as this song. Here are the lyrics:

~I Will Rise~ There's a peace I've come to know Though my heart and flesh may fail There's an anchor for my soul I can say "It is well" Jesus has overcome And the grave is overwhelmed The victory is won He is risen from the dead And I will rise when He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain I will rise on eagles' wings Before my God fall on my knees And rise I will rise There's a day that's drawing near When this darkness breaks to light And the shadows disappear And my faith shall be my eyes Jesus has overcome And the grave is overwhelmed The victory is won He is risen from the dead And I will rise when He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain I will rise on eagles' wings Before my God fall on my knees And rise I will rise And I hear the voice of many angels sing, "Worthy is the Lamb" And I hear the cry of every longing heart, "Worthy is the Lamb" And I hear the voice of many angels sing, "Worthy is the Lamb" And I hear the cry of every longing heart, "Worthy is the Lamb" And I will rise when He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain I will rise on eagles' wings Before my God fall on my knees And rise I will rise

~Today's sermon was related Luke 8:22-25....Jesus calms the storm...and calms the disciples fears. Our pastor asked the questions: What is it in this passage that causes me to love Christ more...to stand in awe of Him more....to trust His sufficiency more completely? Where is your faith?



Jesus was, in essence, asking the disciples why they were worried, upset and afraid....why didn't they remain calm and TRUST Him?



We need to 'exercise 'our faith...continuously trusting in Him...the more we exercise our faith, it strengthens it ...sort of building our 'faith muscles'...remembering always...."I am not in control...God is in control!



After this sermon...and worship...coming home and listening to "I Will Rise" all afternoon really spoke to my heart....and calmed, strengthened and comforted me! May you all have a blessed Sabbath today! ~Sue~

Good Friends and a Fillipino Feast!

What a wonderful time we had last night with our new friends, the Logan Family! Judy is Filipino, and introduced us to some of her favorite foods. We had a great time, hanging out, watching it snow and making this delicious food....we're all adicted to the Shanghai Egg Rolls pictured below.

Below are all the egg rolls that Meghan and I wrapped, stacked up waiting to be fried.

Here is Meghan, happily rolling away...when we tasted how wonderful they were, we didn't mind wrapping!

The filling is so easy...just some ground beef, ground pork, finely chopped carrot and cabbage, egg, onion & garlic powder and salt and pepper....just mix and roll! ( of course, we discovered that we had to cut the wrappers into fourths, use just a little bit of filling and roll TIGHT.

Here are Ronnie and his friend Jacob sword fighting...they played so much all night...really wiped them out!

Here is Meghan, cheek to cheek with Bella who just turned 3 yesterday! The girls babysit for them frequently, and we love them to death!

Here is Sara cheek to cheek with Hannah...who just turned 2. These girls are so darn cute! They also look very much like twins...have to know them to tell them apart!

Anna had a great time...playing with the girls, and all the cool toys!

This dish is called "Pancit Palabok, Malabon style. Basically, it is rice noodles with a special sauce with ground beef and a 'gravy' that you buy at an oriental market...then it is garnished with pieces of shrimp and hardboiled eggs. It was very good, but I think an acquired taste...tasted a little like anchovies.

This is Chicken Adobo....very simple, delicious chicken...served with jasmine rice.

I must say, that besides all the laughing that went on...the egg rolls were a huge hit and the favorite of everyone! The girls and I can't wait to make them again! We're so grateful for the Logan's friendship! The Lord has really been bringing more and more friends into our lives lately....we're feeling overwhelmingly blessed with friendship, fellowship and the love of God! ~Sue~

I found a giveaway!

I entered a giveaway and wanted all of you to have a chance at winning too! This post is purely for selfish reasons, as the blogger will enter me twice if I post about it! Hee Hee Hee! Anyway...
Here is the link to the giveaway post so ya'll can enter: http://hannahbearsblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/my-first-giveaway.html
and here is a picture of what you would win:

An excerpt from the post: "You can enter to win these two bars of homemade glycerin soaps. Both of these soaps are antibacterial. I love to make soap and I decided on these two because they smell the very best. The large square is coconut lime verbena with coconut flakes at the bottom of the bar. The round one is goats milk and honey with a little bit of oats and some vanilla. The giveaway includes both of these soaps so their will only be one winner."

So go try your hand at giveaways... this one definitely takes the cake (get it, cakes of soap? Yeah, I know lame!).

Movie Review Friday

I'm going to copy my friend Ella by doing one or two old movie reviews every Friday. I might break from the old movie cycle by occasionally throwing in something from 'this century.' :) Sometimes there will be musicals, dramas, or just family favorites. I could drone, er, talk about old movies for hours so if these posts are a weeee bit long, bear with me. :)

Today I'm going to review one of my favorite musicals: Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)

Cast: Robert Walker, Van Heflin, Lucille Bremer, Judy Garland and the MGM star parade.

This movie is a lovely bio-pic about Jerome Kern. I first heard of Jerome Kern through this movie, and absolutely fell in love with his songs. It is a movie that is mostly fiction based on fact. MGM puts sparkle and fun into everything, no matter about how accurate (or not accurate) it may be. Robert Walker plays the young Jerome Kern, just starting out in the music business. He writes melodies to songs and he goes to Jim Hessler (Van Heflin) to help with writing the score and 'getting it out there.' The majority of the movie is clips of Jerome's Kern's songs that MGM stars sing and dance to. The title song, Till the Clouds Roll By, is sung by Ray McDonald while he dances with June Allyson on a stage in plastic rain coats, umbrellas and, of course, rain. This movie has MGM's star power, glitz, sparkle and charisma at every turn.

The beginning of the movie shows an older Jerome Kern (Robert Walker) watching the play "Showboat" he and Oscar Hammerstein put together based on the novel by Edna Ferber. MGM stars are cast in the show within the movie. Lena Horne sings, "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man of Mine" as Julie Laverne. Viginia O'Brien sings, "Life Upon the Wicked Stage" very humorously. And, my personal favorite part of this segment of the movie, is when Kathryn Grayson and Tony Martin, as Magnolia and Gaylord, sing "Make Believe." Kathryn Grayson went on to star in the movie version of Showboat a few years later. As Jerome Kern is being driven to the after-party, he begins a retrospect as he passes the house where his good friend, Jim Hessler had lived when he (Jerome Kern) was just starting out.

Through out the movie, stars such as Angela Lansbury, Kathryn Grayson, Frank Sinatra, Dinah Shore, Cyd Charisse, Tony Martin, Ray McDonald, June Allyson, Judy Garland, Virginia O'Brien, the Wilde Twins and Lena Horne, all have beautifully choreographed and directed musical numbers singing Jerome Kern's timeless songs. This movie is a feast for the eyes and ears for any musical enthusiast.

Can you tell I love this movie yet? :) Just kidding. See you next Friday!

Rest...and refreshment...

We have been staying home...almost exclusively since the day after Christmas, when a stomach virus started around our family....it's a strange one, too....one child had it 24 hours, another is still wiped out and if he does any exertion, he is done for and needs to rest. Well...at the same time, I developed a Fibromyalgia flareup that has not gone away. After being awake for over 3 hours last night, and in a lot of pain today...I've done a lot of thinking about ( and praying about) a lot of things...our home, our routines, our health...and what is God's will for our family at this time.

Here is an excerpt from the classic devotional book 'Streams in the Desert'. I just love this devotional and it never fails to speak to my heart...and quiet, strengthen and comfort me.

"(1Kings 19:7) "The journey is too much for me...." What did God do with Elijah, his tired servant? He allowed him to sleep and gave him something good to eat. Elijah had done a tremendous work and in his excitement, he had run "ahead of Ahab's chariot all the way to Jezreel" (1kings 18:46) But the run had been too much for him and had sapped his physical strength...ultimately causing him to become depressed. Just as others in this condition need sleep and want their conditions treated, Elijah's physical requirements needed to be met. When this happens to us, the words of the Master are very soothing, "Get up and eat for the journey is too much for you". In other words, " I am going to refresh you." Therefore, may we never confuse physical weariness with spiritual weariness.

~ It is really hard, sometimes, I think, when you are physically weary, wornout and in pain to NOT become spiritually weary...but the Lord IS so faithful to me...He meets me in the middle of the night...in the middle of my pain...in worshipping Him...even if it is resting under blankets....He also refreshes my spirit by putting opportunities for me to serve Him....even thru flareups of my illness....sometimes by sitting quietly and crocheting while laughing and watching a family movie, sometimes by snuggling and reading books with my little ones....even thru serving by making meals for others....not much more work to double a recipe...and meals for others are really a family ministry. The girls help with all the prep work and sometimes make certain parts of the meal themselves and Ron never minds delivering them for us. It's a nice way we can all serve...in spite of physical limitations or pain.

Sometimes, too, when we are forced to stay home...I find I actually have much more time to read the Word...to listen to worship while preparing a meal...or just to sit quietly and pray...spend time with my Father...resting in His unique care for me...remembering always, that He knows my needs before we ever need them...and gives us what we need.

I was supposed to go to our small group tonight...and was really looking forward to it. One of the things we were supposed to come prepared to share were a couple of our favorite scriptures that we turn to often. Here are a few of mine:

Deuteronomy 33:25 "As your days, so shall your strength be"

Phillipians 4:11 "For I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content"

Jeremiah 29:11-13 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord..."

And...1Timothy 6:6-8 "Now Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain that we can carry nothing out. And, having food and clothing, with these we shall be content."

Of course, I love all of God's love letter to me...I can get lost in Psalms...I'm enthralled by Genesis, convicted by Deuteronomy and the commandments, in awe of everything of Jesus' life...and I am comforted and encouraged by Job and Revelation....I am learning to take these times of 'enforced' rest...and rest in my Father's arms....to listen to His still small voice when I am not running around to a lot of commitments....and really appreciating and enjoying the family that He has blessed me with. I've come to realize that God's plan for everyone is different...Oh, how He lavishes His BEST on us....how foolish we are when we are 'too busy' to see it or often comparing our lives, our homes and our families with someone elses!!! How ungrateful! I'm going to go now, heat up some leftovers for the kids and I since Ron got called into work an extra shift.
( Thanks, Lord, for the extra work...it's greatly appreciated!)...and maybe light a fire tonight and enjoy my children...while resting. May you all have a restful evening and be blessed! ~Sue~

I Love Bread Making!

On Jasmine Baucham's blog (click here) a few weeks ago, she posted a post that announced that Franklin Springs Media was hosting an essay contest. Well, I didn't win, but I thought a good post would be to post my essay and see what everyone thinks! Can't wait until a new contest from them, their DVD's are phenomenal. Here is my essay, on the joys of breadmaking. Sorry that it is kind short; the guideline was 250 words or less... thats kind of short for me!

Why I love bread making
An essay written by Sara Gorecki
I love to make homemade bread for many reasons. The smell, the feel, and the taste contribute to it, but my favorite thing about making bread is the feeling of productivity in serving my family. Our family has six people, and two children under the age of ten, so we go through a lot of PBJ sandwiches and quick lunches using bread. With all the preservatives in store bought bread, we have chosen to make homemade bread as well as grinding our own grain into flour. There is something about walking into a kitchen and smelling fresh baked bread!

Serving my family is one of my highest priorities, so any time I can serve them, I do. Bread making is one of the ways I can help my mother, who does so much for us. I remember when I was little my mother would let my sister and I help knead the dough and use the big wooden spoon to stir the dough. That precious memory has carried on to my younger siblings as well, especially our ‘little mother’ who is four and loves to be a mommy. Bread making has benefits for your health, but it also has benefits for your soul. Comfort food is food that feeds your soul, and what does that more than homemade bread?