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2/19/10 Journey through Infertility, Bear Birthday, Worry, Prayer, Lau ndry Soap, Gems, Trip

#1 · February 19, 2010, 5:01 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on February 19, 2010, 5:01 pm
Posted by: jhbreneman <jhbreneman@...>

HEART TO HEART NEWSLETTER
ENCOURAGEMENT TO WOMEN

Compiled especially for you with love by Lois Breneman

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2/19/10 Journey through Infertility, Bear Birthday, Worry, Prayer, Laundry Soap, Gems, Trip

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The purpose of the Heart to Heart Newsletter is to encourage women and build biblical values into daily living through practical creative ideas for the Christian family regarding marriage, children, homemaking, and much more. Receive this free bimonthly newsletter by sending your name, city, state, e-mail address, and name of your referral person to Lois at jhbreneman@juno.com. New subscribers will receive a "Start-Up Kit."

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IN THIS ISSUE:

OUR JOURNEY THROUGH INFERTILITY
TEDDY BEAR BIRTHDAY PARTY
WORRY, WARTS, & WISHES
A SWEET REMINDER THAT GOD STILL ANSWERS PRAYER

CELL PHONE VS. BIBLE
TIPS AND TIDBITS
HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP FOR PENNIES PER LOAD
AN OLD RECIPE FOR WASHING CLOTHES
SPELLING TIPS FOR KIDS WITH ADHD
BEEF SOUP PROVENCAL
BABY ANNOUNCEMENT
AN OVERVIEW OF OUR RETIREMENT TRIP

OUR JOURNEY THROUGH INFERTILITY
by Twylene Musser, a "Heart to Heart" friend in Pennsylvania

If God can be glorified through this, and/or if someone can be touched, then here is our story.  If anyone wishes to contact me, I don’t mind if my e-mail address is included as well. ([email protected])

My first reaction when Lois asked me to write our story was, “I don’t think so.” God asked me to rethink that. I do enjoy writing, maybe God can somehow be glorified, and maybe someone will be touched because of our journey. So, because of Christ, here is our story…

            I guess it really begins before my husband and I ever met. Sheldon was just 16 when he was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma, a cancer in the bone or soft tissue. He had a tumor growing off one of his ribs. It took almost a year before a doctor diagnosed him, and by this time, the tumor was the size of a football. He began chemo almost immediately at Hershey Medical Center.

            I knew Sheldon slightly because we were in the same youth group. Our youth group was large, however, and I was a year and a half older than he was. I remember all of us praying for him and his family, never dreaming that this was my future husband.

            Sheldon had six months of chemo, surgery to remove the shrunken tumor plus five ribs, seven weeks of radiation, along with six more months of chemo. It was during all this that we began dating. Our first date picture features a young man with a shiny bald head!

            Then began the check-ups and waiting to see if the cancer was gone. Praise God, he has been cancer-free for ten years now!

            We were married in the fall of 2002. Just before our wedding, Sheldon’s doctor had informed us of the possibility of infertility due to all the treatments.

            Our first married years, we didn’t often think of the fact that we were childless. But as our friends started their families it became more painful. There was a time when we wanted biological children so bad we could almost taste it. I remember crying in disappointment every month when I knew once again that there was no baby.

            We thoroughly enjoyed every moment of our time “just the two of us.” Camping, going on trips, working on projects, making wonderful memories. It seemed that our relationship had a chance to go deeper than some because of the disappointments we faced together. Also, we were forced to talk about some issues that some couples never encounter. We thank God that it pulled us together rather than pushing us apart as infertility does in some cases.

We spent two years in mission work in Romania. We were reminded again that we would not have been able to do some of the things we were doing if we had children. We felt like we had more time for ministry without a family.

            When we moved home in October of 2008, our situation struck home once again. The longings came flooding back in force. They had never left, but giving on the mission field helped to fulfill them in part. We had discussed foster care, domestic adoption, and international adoption together often. It seemed that neither one of us was ready to proceed at the same time. So, we waited on God and each other. I also struggled with the fact that adoption still felt “second best” to me. I felt like this – “we can’t have children so I guess we have to adopt.” Then a wonderful friend, who was in the same situation, told me that ours is a calling. Some people are called to have biological children, while some are called to parent children to whom they didn’t give birth. There is no “better way.” Our journey is our journey. We can’t look around and wish for another’s because this is the one that we are called to walk. I needed time to process this. It was summer 2009 when I felt like this thought from God through a faithful friend broke through to me. I was ready and so was Sheldon.

            We began foster care classes through Berks County Children and Youth Services, a state agency, in October of 2009. Six classes, a home study and a house evaluation and we were approved.

            Our first call came before we heard of our approval. Could we take a three-month old little boy? We agreed, but they decided to place him through a more specialized agency. The next call was for a three-month old girl. Again we agreed and were planning to pick her up the next day. Again it didn’t work out because a grandma appeared and took her instead. January 19^th – “How soon can you be here? We have a six-week old baby boy who needs a home.” An hour and a half later and we were suddenly parents!

            I can’t quite explain how we felt. He was a precious baby boy and we loved him dearly. But, the adjustments were huge. Seven and a half years of childless marriage changed in a few hours’ time. He wasn’t a very good sleeper due mostly to a bad cold. We were sleep deprived. We needed to take him for doctor appointments and visits (both in Reading which is 45 minutes one way.) I went through a day of weepiness – I just wanted “my life” back. We felt like we were making the adjustments and then…

We had Ray-Ray three days. He went back to his daddy on January 22. Then we grieved. How can you become so attached to a little person in three days? Do you know how it feels to walk out of a courthouse with an empty infant seat and leave “your” baby behind? Sheldon came home from work early and we held each other and wept. Reminders were everywhere. Can we do this? Can we open our hearts to a child and then have them taken from our arms leaving our hearts bleeding? Yes, this is what we feel God has called us to do. If He’s called us, He will enable us.

When the call came the following Tuesday for a baby girl, we were ready to say, “Yes” again. The next day, January 27^th, Bellamarie joined our home. She is a precious gift from God. Will we be able to adopt her? I don’t know. Her case worker says she’ll be in our home at least six months. We worry because the longer she’s with us, the harder it will be to give her up. But if God has carried us through in the past, He will carry us through whatever is in our future.

Our journey isn’t over yet. I think it’s exciting to see what He has in store for us and our little daughter. Every time you open your heart to love, you open it to hurt as well. If you close your heart to hurt, you also close it to love. I want to be surrounded by love and I know that God will heal any hurt that comes with losses I’ll encounter.
            With a thankful heart – Twylene Musser

TEDDY BEAR BIRTHDAY PARTY
by Leslie Lobdell in Arkansas

(After seeing adorable pictures of Leslie's son's birthday party, I asked her if she would write an article to include in Heart to Heart, and here it is!)

A teddy bear party is a great theme for a younger child's birthday, and an easy theme to carry out. There are so many things you can do with decorations, food, games, and party favors. We gave our son a teddy bear party for his first birthday and everyone seemed to have a blast.

For decorations I found teddy bears and the number "one" on clip art and printed them out on construction paper. I cut them out, punched holes in them, and hung the decorations from the living room and dining room ceiling by thread. The bears and number 1's were also taped on the walls around the house, mainly at eye level for the little kids that would be coming as guests. I also cut out paw prints from brown construction paper and taped them on the driveway and stairs leading into the house. Stuffed teddy bears, gathered from all around the house, were used as decorations placed on end tables and entryway tables. One stuffed bear sat on the food table with a Burger King crown with a number "one" glued in the center.

Plates, napkins, a balloon, stickers, and a candle were all ordered Online from "Birthday in a Box." You can find so many party supply stores that offer teddy bear decor.

I made a homemade teddy bear cake. The pan was purchased with a coupon from Michaels for about $8. I also had a small teddy bear cake pan that was bought for 69 cents at a discount store. The smaller cake was all for the birthday boy to dig into :-)!

For snacks we had gummy bears, Teddy Grahams, and chicken salad and peanut butter and jelly "bear" sandwiches. I cut the sandwiches into bear shapes with a cookie cutter. You could also offer an assortment of "bearries"-strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or other treats with honey, since honey is the choice food of bears!

Since most of the guests were under three years of age, we had to be creative with the activities. I asked each child to bring his/her favorite teddy bear. An area was set up in the living room to take a picture of each child with his/her teddy bear. They sat on a brown furry rug with a teddy bear, with number 1's behind them, and stuffed teddy bears on either side. Extra copies of each child's pictures were given to them as memories of this special time.

We also had the children sit on our area rug and we read two simple bear books to them, somewhat of a "storytime." Then we played a game similar to musical chairs. We had paw prints taped to the floor in a circle. But one paw print had a red piece of construction paper taped to it. This was the winning paw print. When the music was played, the children walked (or were held by their mommies!) around the paw prints. When the music stopped, whoever was on the winning paw print, received a prize appropriate to their gender/age. Some free play at a party is also good for this age group.

Each child received a gift bag on their way out. Ideas for this would be a small teddy bear, play dough, bubbles, finger puppet, crayons, or teddy bear stickers. There are many free coloring pages of teddy bears/birthday teddy bears on the Internet that you can give the kids. The adults could be given a jar of honey and a printout of the history of the teddy bear, which began with Teddy Roosevelt, interesting!

Overall, it was an excellent choice for a birthday party for our one year old son! We were very pleased and impressed with the compliments we received.

WORRY, WARTS, & WISHES
(Excerpt taken from Hiding in the Bathroom . . . and Other Mother Moments, copyright © 2005 Eileen Rife)
www.eileenrife.com - Used by permission

Mothers have the market cornered on worry. It's part of the job description. If I had a penny for every worry thought that has passed through my mind in the last twenty-six years, I would be a wealthy woman! I could have paid for my girls' college education with that money.

Worry begins at conception and doesn't end until the grave. Will this baby make it to term? Why am I having contractions so early? Why isn't she nursing the way she should? Why won't she go to sleep? When will she ever wake up? When will she come home? Why doesn't she leave? And on the list goes. A thousand worries and not many of them grounds for legitimate angst.

Dale Carnegie taught me years ago to ask the question when dealing with worry: "What is the worst possible thing that could happen?" Well, as a mom, I could answer, "Lots of things" she could be in a car accident. She could die. Where Carnegie leaves off, the Apostle Paul picks up. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7 NASB). I can not begin to count the number of nights I have laid in bed staring up at the ceiling quoting that Scripture until a veil of peaceful sleep enveloped me.

The thing about worry is that nine times out of ten, the event you are so concerned about never happens. Personalities like mine, however, tend to focus on that one-tenth possibility of something going wrong. Yet with the worry comes the opportunity to grow in faith. And so I have. At least I like to think that I have. When a tiny inkling of worry crosses my mind I immediately toss it up to the Lord who reminds me that He who cares for the sparrow and clothes the grass of the field will also care for me and mine (Matthew 6:25-34).

Worry seems to be a legacy passed down from my own mother. I called her a worrywart when I was growing up because she obsessed about everything. Now that I have been a mother for twenty-six years I know why. It doesn't excuse it; it merely explains it.

My worry must have revealed itself in my children, for when they were "tweenagers'' a bizarre row of unsightly warts cropped out across their knuckles, at a stage in their lives when they were becoming more conscious about their physical appearance. We soaked, medicated, and prayed but it seemed the warts had a mind of their own. They would disappear when they were good and ready, which was about a year or two after appearing. A lesson well taken, I moralized. All my worry never accomplishes a thing. It only messes up my head and everyone else around me. God will take care of the problem in His way and in His own good time with or without my help.

My worries have led to many good wishes for my daughters. The greatest of them being the desire to see them walk in God's truth. Now I have learned over the years that all the wishing in the world will not accomplish one iota of good in my girls' lives. Only godly training and prayer can direct them to the right path and carry them through the years as they walk out the front door to lives of their own.

Worry can't remove warts any more than it can train children, neither can all the wishing in the world. That is one lesson I have learned the hard way over the years. What blessed freedom comes when worry gives way to prayer and the peace that follows!

A SWEET REMINDER THAT GOD STILL ANSWERS PRAYER

Grab a tissue! Author unknown - Thanks to Paula Archer in Ohio for sending this wonderful, inspiring story!

I spent the week before my daughter's June wedding running last-minute trips to the caterer, florist, tuxedo shop, and the church about forty miles away. As happy as I was that Patsy was marrying a good Christian young man, I felt laden with responsibilities as I watched my budget dwindle.

. . .so many details, so many bills, and so little time. My son Jack was away at college, but he said he would be there to walk his younger sister down the aisle, taking the place of his dad who had died a few years before. He teased Patsy, saying he'd wanted to give her away since she was about three years old!

To save money, I gathered blossoms from several friends who had large magnolia trees. Their luscious, creamy-white blooms and slick green leaves would make beautiful arrangements against the rich dark wood inside the church.

After the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding, we banked the podium area and choir loft with magnolias. As we left just before midnight, I felt tired but satisfied this would be the best wedding any bride had ever had! The music, the ceremony, the reception - and especially the flowers - would be remembered for years.

The big day arrived - the busiest day of my life - and while her bridesmaids helped Patsy to dress, her fiancee Tim, walked with me to the sanctuary to do a final check. When we opened the door and felt a rush of hot air, I almost fainted; and then I saw them - all the beautiful white flowers were black. Funeral black. An electrical storm during the night had knocked out the air conditioning system, and on that hot summer day, the flowers had wilted and died. I panicked, knowing I didn't have time to drive back to our hometown, gather more flowers, and return in time for the wedding. Tim turned to me. "Edna, can you get more flowers? I'll throw away these dead ones and put fresh flowers in these arrangements."

I mumbled, "Sure," as he be-bopped down the hall to put on his cuff links. Alone in the large sanctuary, I looked up at the dark wooden beams in the arched ceiling. "Lord," I prayed, "please help me. I don't know anyone in this town. Help me find someone willing to give me flowers - in a hurry!" I scurried out praying for four things: the blessing of white magnolias, courage to find them in an unfamiliar yard, safety from any dog that may bite my leg, and a nice person who would not get out a shotgun when I asked to cut his tree to shreds.

As I left the church, I saw magnolia trees in the distance. I approached a house . . . No dog in sight. I knocked on the door and an older man answered. So far so good . . . No shotgun. When I stated my plea the man beamed, "I'd be happy to!"

He climbed a stepladder and cut large boughs and handed them down to me. Minutes later, as I lifted the last armload into my car trunk, I said, "Sir, you've made the mother of a bride happy today."

"No, Ma'am," he said. "You don't understand what's happening here."

"What?" I asked.

"You see, my wife of sixty-seven years died on Monday. On Tuesday I received friends at the funeral home, and on Wednesday. He paused. I saw tears welling up in his eyes. "On Wednesday I buried her." He looked away. "On Thursday most of my out-of-town relatives went back home, and on Friday - yesterday - my children left. I nodded.

"This morning," he continued, "I was sitting in my den crying out loud. I miss her so much. For the last sixteen years, as her health got worse, she needed me. But now nobody needs me. This morning I cried, 'Who needs an eighty-six-year- old wore-out man? Nobody! 'I began to cry louder. 'Nobody needs me!' About that time, you knocked, and said, "Sir, I need you."

I stood with my mouth open.

He asked, "Are you an angel? The way the light shone around your head into my dark living room."

I assured him I was no angel.

He smiled. "Do you know what I was thinking when I handed you those magnolias?"

"No."

"I decided I'm needed. My flowers are needed. Why, I might have a flower ministry! I could give them to everyone! Some caskets at the funeral home have no flowers. People need flowers at times like that and I have lots of them. They're all over the backyard! I can give them to hospitals, churches - all sorts of places. You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to serve the Lord until the day He calls me home!"

I drove back to the church, filled with wonder.  On Patsy's wedding day, if anyone had asked me to encourage someone who was hurting, I would have said, "Forget it! It's my only daughter's wedding, for goodness' sake! There is no way I can minister to anyone today."  But God found a way. Through dead flowers.

"Life is not the way it's supposed to be. It's the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference."

CELL PHONE VS. BIBLE
Author unknown - Thanks to Annamarie Kresge in Virginia for sending this!

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phones?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several times a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go ... Hmmm ... where's my Bible?
Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.

TIPS AND TIDBITS
For Bird Lovers and Everyone Else ~ http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=2219299085003&source=jl999 Thanks to Alice Stoddard in Virginia who sent this card to me!

Knitted Dishcloth Directions ~ Thanks to Linda Crosby in Virginia for these directions! This pattern starts in one corner. You will have a triangular-shaped piece until half way through, but end up with a square.
Use Sugar 'N Cream (or comparable) 4 ply cotton knitting yarn and size 8 needles.
Cast on 4 stitches; Knit 4 stitches; Knit 2 stitches, yarn over, knit to end.
Continue this row until you have 43 or 45 stiches on needle (depending on size you want)
Next row: Knit 1 stitch, Knit 2 together, yarn over, knit 2 together, knit to end of row.
Continue until there are 4 stitches; bind off

Family Friendly TV ~ Procter & Gamble (P&G) and Wal-Mart are collaborating to produce TV shows for the whole family. The initial production is Secrets of the Mountain, a two-hour TV movie airing on NBC April 16. It’s about the struggles of a single mother and her three children who embark on an adventure. http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000012081.cfm Citizenlink is a ministry of Focus on the Family. Please go to www.citizenlink.org to receive daily news of which we as Christians should be knowledgeable.

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP FOR PENNIES PER LOAD
By Lois Breneman, © 2008, Revised 2010, Heart to Heart Newsletter, <A onclick="top.checkNewBrowser('[email protected]&count=1266606931')" href="mailto:jhbreneman@juno.">jhbreneman@juno.com

Last week I made two batches of this recipe for more economical laundry soap. If you enjoy putting a simple recipe together and saving money, you will enjoy this project. Let the children help. They will find it fascinating as well.  Two batches took less than 30 minutes to make and I had fun doing it.

Commercial laundry detergents cost as much as 30 cents per load, even on sale or with a coupon, but you can get clothes just as clean for pennies per load, using this pure low suds recipe. Why not put that savings toward other things? It would be interesting to keep a record of the number of loads you do in a month or year and calculate your savings! Hang a calendar in your laundry with a pencil on a string to keep track. If you have children and do an average of ten loads each week, saving a quarter on each load, you would save $140 in one year.

Because this is a pure soap without fillers, dyes and strong perfumes, it is even safe for babies and anyone who is normally allergic to other laundry products. There's no need to purchase special detergent to prevent rashes or hives. If no one in your family is allergic, you may even add a small amount (1/4 - 1/2 ounce) of essential oil for fragrance.

This homemade soap works great in High Efficiency Washers, because there are very few suds.

You only need three ingredients which can all be found in most grocery stores (laundry aisle):
        1/3 bar of Fels-Naptha soap (Or 1 whole bar of Ivory or any other bar of soap)   $1.29 (for a bar of Fels-Naptha)
        1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (This is not baking soda)                       2.89
        1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax                                                                                        3.99

That's a total of only $8.17 to get started. You will be able to make three batches from the Fels-Naptha, ten from the washing soda and twenty batches from the Borax! One batch costs 93 cents for 61 loads of laundry, if you use 1/2 cup per load. That's just 1.52 cents per load! Can you believe that? Even if you double the amount, you would be paying about 3 cents per load! For High Efficiency Washers, using 1/4 cup, the cost would be a rock bottom .076 cents - 3/4 of a cent!

Instructions:
1. Score the Fels-Naptha soap to divide it into thirds. Using a cutting board, shave the bar of soap with a chef's knife. Fels-Naptha soap is soft so it's easy to do, as you thinly slice the end of the bar. Store leftover soap shavings in a Ziplock bag and label for future batches.

2. In a Dutch oven (about 6 quart pot) heat 6 cups of water and shavings from 1/3 bar of Fels-Naptha soap or an entire bar of Ivory or any other bar of soap over medium heat. I was able to make 2 batches in a 6 quart Dutch oven, before adding additional water.

3. Dissolve the soap completely; then stir in 1/2 cup Borax and 1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda and stir over the heat until it's all dissolved. Carefully pour hot solution into a 3 gallon or larger bucket.   For each batch I used a three gallon bucket that dishwashing compound came in at Sam's.

4. Add 4 additional cups of hot water to the soap mixture bucket and stir well.

5.    If you would like a mild scent, add 1/4 to 1/2 ounce of essential oil. Another option: Add a few cups of commercial detergent to the mixture for fragrance and extra cleaning power (if allergies aren't a problem in your family)..

6. Add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of cold water to this solution. Stir well and let set without stirring for 24 hours. It will have the consistency of a liquid gel, with no dye. Stir after 24 hours.

7. Keep a tight fitting lid on the liquid laundry solution. Measure 1/2 cup for each load of laundry (1/4 cup for High Efficiency washers). You may want to save your old liquid laundry detergent containers for storing and easy pouring. If you wish, add a few marbles to help mix the gel as you shake the bottle a little before using.

Notes:
*   For myself, I prefer this recipe with a little fragrance. Since I had a good bit of liquid laundry detergent on hand from sales, I poured a little into my homemade mixture for a nice scent.
*   You may want to experiment to see if 1/2 cup is enough to make your clothes fresh and clean. Even if you used a full cup, this recipe would still be much less expensive than most laundry detergents. I prefer using a full cup for most loads.
*   I still use fabric softener sheets in the dryer.
* This laundry soap is safe for HE washers, because it is low sudsing.
*   Fels-Naptha bars of soap are also great for stain removal. After removing a bar from its paper wrapper, I wrapped it with a terry cleaning cloth, and secured it with two rubber bands. That makes it easier to hold while rubbing on a garment stain that has first been made wet.
* We all know how dishcloths get smelly after a day of use. Let Fels-Naptha come to your rescue! Rub your dishcloth with the bar of soap to help remove the odor and stains. Zap the wet soapy cloth in the microwave for 1-2 minutes to kill germs and you've got a fresh clean dishcloth again!

Caution about Buckets: Some people store their liquid laundry solution in five gallon buckets, but let me caution you to keep a tight-fitting lid on it and out of reach of toddlers. If they get the lid off, they could fall in and drown! Please never store uncovered buckets of water or other liquids where tragic accidents could happen. Using much smaller buckets or old laundry containers would be safer.

Powdered Homemade Laundry Detergent

1 cup grated Fels-Naptha soap (I chop the bar with a chef's knife, then put in the food processor - sharp blade)
1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda (not baking soda)
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax

Mix and store in airtight container.  For light loads, use 2 tablespoons.
For heavy loads, use 3 tablespoons.

To Make a Larger Batch ~ Shave 6 bars of Fels-Naptha soap with a chef's knife. Add 3 cups of Super Washing Soda and 3 cups of 20 Mule Team Borax. Mix well and store in an airtight container. I store the powdered soap in cookie tins and it keeps well for a very long time. Rather than put it directly into the laundry, I put it in a small bucket, run hot water over it, stir, add cold water and pour it into the washer with the clothes. That way I can be sure it will all dissolve, even when using cold or cool water in the washer, which I usually do.

White Vinegar - I add about a half cup of white vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser of the washer. This helps remove the soap residue and also acts as a softener, but without the vinegar, I noticed my clothes were softer just by using this homemade soap!

You can also do an Internet search to learn more about this wonderful homemade laundry soap. It's a great savings! Many Heart to Heart subscribers have written to tell me they tried it and really love it!

AN OLD RECIPE FOR "WARSHING" CLOTHES

Thanks to Elinor Wright in Virginia for sharing this!

Years ago a Kentucky grandmother gave a new bride the following recipe for washing clothes. It appears below just as it was written, and despite the spelling, has a bit of philosophy. This is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrapbook (with spelling errors and all). Some of the younger people might have to ask a grandparent to explain this.

Warshing Clothes

1. Bilt fire in backyard to heat kettle of rain water.
2. Set tubs so smoke wont blow in eyes if wind is pert.
3. Shave one hole cake of lie soap in bilin water.
4. Sort things, make 3 piles, 1 pile white, 1 pile colored, 1 pile work britches and rags.
5. To make starch, stir flour in cool water to smooth, then thin down with bilin water.
6. Take white things, rub dirty spots on board, scrub hard, and then bile. Rub colored, don't bile, just rinch and starch.
7. Take things out of kettle with broomstick handle, then rinch, and starch.
8. Hang old rags on fence.
9. Spread tea towels on grass.
10. Pore rinch water in flower bed.
11. Scrub porch with hot soapy water.
12. Turn tubs upside down.
13. Go put on clean dress, smooth hair with hair combs. Brew cup of tea, sit on a rock a spell and count your
blessings.

We're so fortunate to have all that we have.  Paste this over your washer and dryer and next time when you think your life is bleak, read it again and give thanks for your blessings!

SPELLING TIPS FOR KIDS WITH ADHD
An Ounce of Ketchup, produced by A. L. Dash & Sons, PO Box 714 Graham, NC 27253 www.goaskmom.com
Used by permission

Each year people ask about spelling hints. It's a huge deal for kids - especially throughout elementary school. Here are some hints - new and old. And note that there's a link to even more at the end of the section:

~Go outside and spell while swinging - one letter on back, the next on front. (In this weather, you might need to use a rocking chair inside!)

~Spell the word on a large index card using a different colored marker for each syllable.

~Put the spelling to music. Like "J-E-L-L-O" or "B-O-L-O-G-N-A". (This works for locker combinations, too, and important phone numbers.)

~Try the "sail" method, in which you write the word on lines, adding a letter on each until it is done (and looks like a sail):

      b
      br
      bri
      brin
      bring

~Fill a gallon sized zip lock bag with a small layer of liquid tempera paint, close it and write a word on the bag.

~You spell the word out loud, and have your child tell you which word you're spelling.

~Practice writing and saying common suffixes by themselves without the word: ing, ion, tion, ed.

~Use sign language to spell.

~Let your child use a voice recorder to record the spelling and then listen to her own voice.

~Use play-dough to spell out the words.

~Use an electronic dictionary.

There are more hints at www.adhd-inattentive.com

BEEF SOUP PROVENCAL
Thanks to Becky Noell in Georgia for this recipe!

1 lb. lean ground beef
1/4 tsp. rosemary
1 can vegetable broth
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 can white beans, rinsed
1 can chopped tomatoes with garlic, basin and oregano with liquid
4 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach
Shredded Parmesan for garnish

Brown beef in a large pan; drain well. Stir in everything except spinach and cheese. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 5 minutes. Stir in spinach. Simmer 5 more minutes. Serve and sprinkle with cheese. Freezes well if you want to make a lot

BABY ANNOUNCEMENT
Sheldon and Twylene Musser picked up a precious three month old little girl, Bellamarie, as their foster child on February 27, 2010, hoping to adopt her. Twylene's article on their journey through infertility is at the top of this newsletter. Please let us all pray for a smooth and speedy transition of "foster child to adopted child" for Bellamarie. I pray she will be blessed to have Sheldon and Twylene as her permanent loving parents very soon, and that she will learn about the Lord Jesus and accept Him into her heart at an early age, as I pray all of our children and grandchildren will do.

PRECIOUS GEMS
Ladies, thanks so much to all you dear ladies for allowing me to include your precious gems in Heart to Heart! I'd love to hear the cute and funny things you or your grown children said as a young child, as well as current gems. Years ago I used to entitle this section, "Out of the Mouths of Bab**," but had to change that after the newsletter started coming to some ladies as spam! Can you believe that? It's so sad that such a sweet and innocent word has been distorted. The words, "Precious Gems" seemed to fit, and so here are some more of those treasures for you to enjoy!

Caleb, 4, the other night said, "Mama, since you're sick, you can sleep with one of my stuffed animals." He gave me his little lion and then said to it, "Now don't you bite Mama!" The lion roared an "OK". Caleb then said, "Mama, you be SURE and tell me in the mornin' if he bites you." I said I would. 🙂 How thankful I am for these three God-given treasures!! 🙂 ~ Katie Gay in Virginia

Susan Caldwell in Virginia, shares two Precious Gems from a long time ago - both about her nephew, Mark, who is now 36: One day when Mark's mother hugged him, he simply replied, "When you hug me Mom, you make hearts pop out all over me."

Mark and his mother went to the doctor one day. It was before he began school. He had to have his shots. He cried. When they came out into the waiting room which by now was full with parents and children, in a very loud voice he announced, "Listen up customers, they're giving shots in there and they hurt!!!"

The next two were sent by Vickie Butterfield in Idaho:
My 6 year old daughter lost her first tooth a couple of weeks ago. When I showed her the tooth she says, "Mom, is that blood? I think I need some pizza." (to this I'm thinking.....when most females are stressed they want chocolate. My daughter wants pizza lol) Dad surprised her with pizza for dinner 🙂

Last May, about the time my grandson turned 8, he said something and had the actions of my wonderful husband. I told him, "Charlie, I think you have been hanging around Papa too much. You are beginning to sound and act just like him." To this he answered, "Nana, Papas are like sugar, you can just never have too much of him." My daughter (his mother) took this quote and made a framed picture collage of Papa and Charlie photos for Papa for Father's Day with the words throughout the collage. It was awesome!

      A mom was driving her five year old son to McDonald's one day and they passed a car accident. Whenever the Mom saw something terrible like that, she would always say a prayer for those who might be hurt, so she pointed and said to her son, "We should pray."
      From the back seat she heard his earnest request: "Please, God, don't let those cars block the entrance to McDonald's."

After school one day, a young first-grade boy was sitting at the kitchen table, eating his afternoon snack, when he blurted out, "Mom, the teacher was asking me today if I have any brothers or sisters who will be coming to school."
The boy's mother replied, "That's nice of her to take such an interest, dear. What did she say when you told her you are the only child?" She just said, "Thank goodness!"

AN OVERVIEW OF OUR RETIREMENT TRIP
By Lois

               Recently my husband retired as a mechanical engineer after almost forty years of hard work. He hopes to continue part time as a consultant for a while if everything works out as planned. But for the past five weeks he's been off - with me! We just returned from a three week and three day trip of a lifetime in the deeper south, missing several deep snows and frigid temperatures here in Virginia! The only other time we took a three-week trip was a year before our first child was born.
                We started out with six days in Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, enjoying the historic districts in both cities. Seeing the very old homes dating back to the beginning of our country and touring several of them were my favorite part. We did a lot of walking as well as touring via trolley and horse carriage.  Oh yes, and we ate a delicious buffet lunch at Paula Deen's restaurant in Savannah!   And, yes, there really was butter on most everything!
                Another day we drove past the Daytona Beach Speedway, hearing the roaring sound of tires on the track during the Rolex Race. An interesting day was spent at Cape Canaveral at the Kennedy Space Center, before driving to Orlando, where we walked through the Epcot Center most of the 12 hours spent there - carrying umbrellas in the warm rain. It was still a very enjoyable time. We test drove a speeding car at over 60 mph, and went on a trip to Mars. I don't recommend the Mars trip! We ended our day with dinner in a French restaurant, and a spectacular fireworks display over the lake with music, fountains and a lit up display of the world.
                The next day we drove through intermittent heavy downpours of rain, but were still able to enjoy seeing many beautiful orange groves with loaded trees and take good pictures at times, as we headed toward Sanibel Island and Captiva Island, off the coast of Fort Myers.  It was raining hard when we arrived, but thankfully it stopped an hour later. What a lovely place, where it was in the 70's and into the 80's during our six days there! My cousin/sister-in-law, Elaine, was right when she said, "Skip the rest and stay there the whole time!" We stayed on the narrowest section of Captiva Island with our rooms and screened-in porch overlooking the bay, and the Gulf of Mexico beach was just a short walk across the road. The most beautiful seashells can be found there, and I loved the search! There are piles of shells in one section on Sanibel Island and a digging tool helped to find many treasures. I really enjoyed finding, cleaning, sorting and identifying forty-seven different kinds of seashells there, after purchasing a book on seashells found in that part of Florida. The breakfasts were so good where we stayed - fresh pineapple and strawberries, and other goodies each morning. We ate sandwiches on the porch while watching the pelicans, enjoyed cooking in some nights, and went out a couple evenings while there. As we left the Islands, we visited the Sanibel Shell Museum. Just looking at those magnificant shells, you know there is a God who gave us all things to enjoy!
                Later we spent the night at St. Pete Beach, and a city in south Georgia on our way for a week with our daughter, son-in-law and two of our grandchildren, which is always enjoyable.  Justin's daddy and Paw Paw were able to join him at his Christian school one morning for "Donuts with Dad," and I volunteered to help serve. We got to see Justin play Upward Basketball, where his dad is his coach. I was surprised to hear my two year old granddaughter was saying, "Oh my goodness" a lot. Later I commented to my daughter about how cute that was, and she told me Ryan Elizabeth picked that up from me! She wasn't saying it until we arrived. Oh my goodness, they absorb everything we say, don't they?
                As great a time as we had on the trip, it is always so good to be home again! A friend watered my houseplants for me, and the African violets and Easter catcus greeted me with lots of pretty pink blooms! The second evening we were home our water heater quit, which works together with our heat, thus no heat either. We piled on the blankets that night and the next day it was fixed. We're so grateful to the Lord that didn't happen while we were gone, with the temperatures so low. We're also thankful for a safe trip, no car trouble, or illness for us or our family during that time.
                Since we're home, my amazing organized engineer husband already mapped out on the computer what we spent on gas, housing, food, events, parking, miscellaneous items, even the percentages of each. He was thrilled that it was less than he had planned. It was a wonderful trip and we thank the Lord for His love, care and many blessings!
                This may have been a "Retirement Trip," but I'm not ready to retire yet! Heart to Heart will continue as long as the Lord wants it to go on.


                                                            Many Heart to Heart ladies and their families need our prayers,
                                    so please remember to pray for each Heart to Heart lady as you receive your newsletter.

(¨`·.·´¨)                                                  God bless you and your family and keep you in His loving care!

`·.¸(¨`·.·´¨)                                                       And remember, I love to hear from you dear ladies!

      `·.¸.·´                                                                           Your Heart to Heart friend,

                                                                                                                                        Lois

Disclaimer: Various web sites are given as credits or to supply additional information for readers. However, all the views and advertisements represented by web sites given in this newsletter are not necessarily the views of the editor. Please use your own discretion regarding all information given in this newsletter.

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Posted by: jhbreneman <jhbreneman@...>

HEART TO HEART NEWSLETTER
ENCOURAGEMENT TO WOMEN

Compiled especially for you with love by Lois Breneman

~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~:~*~
2/19/10 Journey through Infertility, Bear Birthday, Worry, Prayer, Laundry Soap, Gems, Trip

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The purpose of the Heart to Heart Newsletter is to encourage women and build biblical values into daily living through practical creative ideas for the Christian family regarding marriage, children, homemaking, and much more. Receive this free bimonthly newsletter by sending your name, city, state, e-mail address, and name of your referral person to Lois at jhbreneman@juno.com. New subscribers will receive a "Start-Up Kit."

Please let me know if you stop receiving the newsletter, but did not unsubscribe.
Send ADDRESS CHANGES to Remain on the E-mailing List - Reply to newsletter with full name, plus old & new address.
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IN THIS ISSUE:

OUR JOURNEY THROUGH INFERTILITY
TEDDY BEAR BIRTHDAY PARTY
WORRY, WARTS, & WISHES
A SWEET REMINDER THAT GOD STILL ANSWERS PRAYER

CELL PHONE VS. BIBLE
TIPS AND TIDBITS
HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP FOR PENNIES PER LOAD
AN OLD RECIPE FOR WASHING CLOTHES
SPELLING TIPS FOR KIDS WITH ADHD
BEEF SOUP PROVENCAL
BABY ANNOUNCEMENT
AN OVERVIEW OF OUR RETIREMENT TRIP

OUR JOURNEY THROUGH INFERTILITY
by Twylene Musser, a "Heart to Heart" friend in Pennsylvania

If God can be glorified through this, and/or if someone can be touched, then here is our story. If anyone wishes to contact me, I don’t mind if my e-mail address is included as well. ([email protected])

My first reaction when Lois asked me to write our story was, “I don’t think so.” God asked me to rethink that. I do enjoy writing, maybe God can somehow be glorified, and maybe someone will be touched because of our journey. So, because of Christ, here is our story…

I guess it really begins before my husband and I ever met. Sheldon was just 16 when he was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma, a cancer in the bone or soft tissue. He had a tumor growing off one of his ribs. It took almost a year before a doctor diagnosed him, and by this time, the tumor was the size of a football. He began chemo almost immediately at Hershey Medical Center.

I knew Sheldon slightly because we were in the same youth group. Our youth group was large, however, and I was a year and a half older than he was. I remember all of us praying for him and his family, never dreaming that this was my future husband.

Sheldon had six months of chemo, surgery to remove the shrunken tumor plus five ribs, seven weeks of radiation, along with six more months of chemo. It was during all this that we began dating. Our first date picture features a young man with a shiny bald head!

Then began the check-ups and waiting to see if the cancer was gone. Praise God, he has been cancer-free for ten years now!

We were married in the fall of 2002. Just before our wedding, Sheldon’s doctor had informed us of the possibility of infertility due to all the treatments.

Our first married years, we didn’t often think of the fact that we were childless. But as our friends started their families it became more painful. There was a time when we wanted biological children so bad we could almost taste it. I remember crying in disappointment every month when I knew once again that there was no baby.

We thoroughly enjoyed every moment of our time “just the two of us.” Camping, going on trips, working on projects, making wonderful memories. It seemed that our relationship had a chance to go deeper than some because of the disappointments we faced together. Also, we were forced to talk about some issues that some couples never encounter. We thank God that it pulled us together rather than pushing us apart as infertility does in some cases.

We spent two years in mission work in Romania. We were reminded again that we would not have been able to do some of the things we were doing if we had children. We felt like we had more time for ministry without a family.

When we moved home in October of 2008, our situation struck home once again. The longings came flooding back in force. They had never left, but giving on the mission field helped to fulfill them in part. We had discussed foster care, domestic adoption, and international adoption together often. It seemed that neither one of us was ready to proceed at the same time. So, we waited on God and each other. I also struggled with the fact that adoption still felt “second best” to me. I felt like this – “we can’t have children so I guess we have to adopt.” Then a wonderful friend, who was in the same situation, told me that ours is a calling. Some people are called to have biological children, while some are called to parent children to whom they didn’t give birth. There is no “better way.” Our journey is our journey. We can’t look around and wish for another’s because this is the one that we are called to walk. I needed time to process this. It was summer 2009 when I felt like this thought from God through a faithful friend broke through to me. I was ready and so was Sheldon.

We began foster care classes through Berks County Children and Youth Services, a state agency, in October of 2009. Six classes, a home study and a house evaluation and we were approved.

Our first call came before we heard of our approval. Could we take a three-month old little boy? We agreed, but they decided to place him through a more specialized agency. The next call was for a three-month old girl. Again we agreed and were planning to pick her up the next day. Again it didn’t work out because a grandma appeared and took her instead. January 19^th – “How soon can you be here? We have a six-week old baby boy who needs a home.” An hour and a half later and we were suddenly parents!

I can’t quite explain how we felt. He was a precious baby boy and we loved him dearly. But, the adjustments were huge. Seven and a half years of childless marriage changed in a few hours’ time. He wasn’t a very good sleeper due mostly to a bad cold. We were sleep deprived. We needed to take him for doctor appointments and visits (both in Reading which is 45 minutes one way.) I went through a day of weepiness – I just wanted “my life” back. We felt like we were making the adjustments and then…

We had Ray-Ray three days. He went back to his daddy on January 22. Then we grieved. How can you become so attached to a little person in three days? Do you know how it feels to walk out of a courthouse with an empty infant seat and leave “your” baby behind? Sheldon came home from work early and we held each other and wept. Reminders were everywhere. Can we do this? Can we open our hearts to a child and then have them taken from our arms leaving our hearts bleeding? Yes, this is what we feel God has called us to do. If He’s called us, He will enable us.

When the call came the following Tuesday for a baby girl, we were ready to say, “Yes” again. The next day, January 27^th, Bellamarie joined our home. She is a precious gift from God. Will we be able to adopt her? I don’t know. Her case worker says she’ll be in our home at least six months. We worry because the longer she’s with us, the harder it will be to give her up. But if God has carried us through in the past, He will carry us through whatever is in our future.

Our journey isn’t over yet. I think it’s exciting to see what He has in store for us and our little daughter. Every time you open your heart to love, you open it to hurt as well. If you close your heart to hurt, you also close it to love. I want to be surrounded by love and I know that God will heal any hurt that comes with losses I’ll encounter.

With a thankful heart – Twylene Musser

TEDDY BEAR BIRTHDAY PARTY
by Leslie Lobdell in Arkansas

(After seeing adorable pictures of Leslie's son's birthday party, I asked her if she would write an article to include in Heart to Heart, and here it is!)

A teddy bear party is a great theme for a younger child's birthday, and an easy theme to carry out. There are so many things you can do with decorations, food, games, and party favors. We gave our son a teddy bear party for his first birthday and everyone seemed to have a blast.

For decorations I found teddy bears and the number "one" on clip art and printed them out on construction paper. I cut them out, punched holes in them, and hung the decorations from the living room and dining room ceiling by thread. The bears and number 1's were also taped on the walls around the house, mainly at eye level for the little kids that would be coming as guests. I also cut out paw prints from brown construction paper and taped them on the driveway and stairs leading into the house. Stuffed teddy bears, gathered from all around the house, were used as decorations placed on end tables and entryway tables. One stuffed bear sat on the food table with a Burger King crown with a number "one" glued in the center.

Plates, napkins, a balloon, stickers, and a candle were all ordered Online from "Birthday in a Box." You can find so many party supply stores that offer teddy bear decor.

I made a homemade teddy bear cake. The pan was purchased with a coupon from Michaels for about $8. I also had a small teddy bear cake pan that was bought for 69 cents at a discount store. The smaller cake was all for the birthday boy to dig into :-)!

For snacks we had gummy bears, Teddy Grahams, and chicken salad and peanut butter and jelly "bear" sandwiches. I cut the sandwiches into bear shapes with a cookie cutter. You could also offer an assortment of "bearries"-strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or other treats with honey, since honey is the choice food of bears!

Since most of the guests were under three years of age, we had to be creative with the activities. I asked each child to bring his/her favorite teddy bear. An area was set up in the living room to take a picture of each child with his/her teddy bear. They sat on a brown furry rug with a teddy bear, with number 1's behind them, and stuffed teddy bears on either side. Extra copies of each child's pictures were given to them as memories of this special time.

We also had the children sit on our area rug and we read two simple bear books to them, somewhat of a "storytime." Then we played a game similar to musical chairs. We had paw prints taped to the floor in a circle. But one paw print had a red piece of construction paper taped to it. This was the winning paw print. When the music was played, the children walked (or were held by their mommies!) around the paw prints. When the music stopped, whoever was on the winning paw print, received a prize appropriate to their gender/age. Some free play at a party is also good for this age group.

Each child received a gift bag on their way out. Ideas for this would be a small teddy bear, play dough, bubbles, finger puppet, crayons, or teddy bear stickers. There are many free coloring pages of teddy bears/birthday teddy bears on the Internet that you can give the kids. The adults could be given a jar of honey and a printout of the history of the teddy bear, which began with Teddy Roosevelt, interesting!

Overall, it was an excellent choice for a birthday party for our one year old son! We were very pleased and impressed with the compliments we received.

WORRY, WARTS, & WISHES
(Excerpt taken from Hiding in the Bathroom . . . and Other Mother Moments, copyright © 2005 Eileen Rife)
http://www.eileenrife.com - Used by permission

Mothers have the market cornered on worry. It's part of the job description. If I had a penny for every worry thought that has passed through my mind in the last twenty-six years, I would be a wealthy woman! I could have paid for my girls' college education with that money.

Worry begins at conception and doesn't end until the grave. Will this baby make it to term? Why am I having contractions so early? Why isn't she nursing the way she should? Why won't she go to sleep? When will she ever wake up? When will she come home? Why doesn't she leave? And on the list goes. A thousand worries and not many of them grounds for legitimate angst.

Dale Carnegie taught me years ago to ask the question when dealing with worry: "What is the worst possible thing that could happen?" Well, as a mom, I could answer, "Lots of things" she could be in a car accident. She could die. Where Carnegie leaves off, the Apostle Paul picks up. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7 NASB). I can not begin to count the number of nights I have laid in bed staring up at the ceiling quoting that Scripture until a veil of peaceful sleep enveloped me.

The thing about worry is that nine times out of ten, the event you are so concerned about never happens. Personalities like mine, however, tend to focus on that one-tenth possibility of something going wrong. Yet with the worry comes the opportunity to grow in faith. And so I have. At least I like to think that I have. When a tiny inkling of worry crosses my mind I immediately toss it up to the Lord who reminds me that He who cares for the sparrow and clothes the grass of the field will also care for me and mine (Matthew 6:25-34).

Worry seems to be a legacy passed down from my own mother. I called her a worrywart when I was growing up because she obsessed about everything. Now that I have been a mother for twenty-six years I know why. It doesn't excuse it; it merely explains it.

My worry must have revealed itself in my children, for when they were "tweenagers'' a bizarre row of unsightly warts cropped out across their knuckles, at a stage in their lives when they were becoming more conscious about their physical appearance. We soaked, medicated, and prayed but it seemed the warts had a mind of their own. They would disappear when they were good and ready, which was about a year or two after appearing. A lesson well taken, I moralized. All my worry never accomplishes a thing. It only messes up my head and everyone else around me. God will take care of the problem in His way and in His own good time with or without my help.

My worries have led to many good wishes for my daughters. The greatest of them being the desire to see them walk in God's truth. Now I have learned over the years that all the wishing in the world will not accomplish one iota of good in my girls' lives. Only godly training and prayer can direct them to the right path and carry them through the years as they walk out the front door to lives of their own.

Worry can't remove warts any more than it can train children, neither can all the wishing in the world. That is one lesson I have learned the hard way over the years. What blessed freedom comes when worry gives way to prayer and the peace that follows!

A SWEET REMINDER THAT GOD STILL ANSWERS PRAYER

Grab a tissue! Author unknown - Thanks to Paula Archer in Ohio for sending this wonderful, inspiring story!

I spent the week before my daughter's June wedding running last-minute trips to the caterer, florist, tuxedo shop, and the church about forty miles away. As happy as I was that Patsy was marrying a good Christian young man, I felt laden with responsibilities as I watched my budget dwindle.

. . .so many details, so many bills, and so little time. My son Jack was away at college, but he said he would be there to walk his younger sister down the aisle, taking the place of his dad who had died a few years before. He teased Patsy, saying he'd wanted to give her away since she was about three years old!

To save money, I gathered blossoms from several friends who had large magnolia trees. Their luscious, creamy-white blooms and slick green leaves would make beautiful arrangements against the rich dark wood inside the church.

After the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding, we banked the podium area and choir loft with magnolias. As we left just before midnight, I felt tired but satisfied this would be the best wedding any bride had ever had! The music, the ceremony, the reception - and especially the flowers - would be remembered for years.

The big day arrived - the busiest day of my life - and while her bridesmaids helped Patsy to dress, her fiancee Tim, walked with me to the sanctuary to do a final check. When we opened the door and felt a rush of hot air, I almost fainted; and then I saw them - all the beautiful white flowers were black. Funeral black. An electrical storm during the night had knocked out the air conditioning system, and on that hot summer day, the flowers had wilted and died. I panicked, knowing I didn't have time to drive back to our hometown, gather more flowers, and return in time for the wedding. Tim turned to me. "Edna, can you get more flowers? I'll throw away these dead ones and put fresh flowers in these arrangements."

I mumbled, "Sure," as he be-bopped down the hall to put on his cuff links. Alone in the large sanctuary, I looked up at the dark wooden beams in the arched ceiling. "Lord," I prayed, "please help me. I don't know anyone in this town. Help me find someone willing to give me flowers - in a hurry!" I scurried out praying for four things: the blessing of white magnolias, courage to find them in an unfamiliar yard, safety from any dog that may bite my leg, and a nice person who would not get out a shotgun when I asked to cut his tree to shreds.

As I left the church, I saw magnolia trees in the distance. I approached a house . . . No dog in sight. I knocked on the door and an older man answered. So far so good . . . No shotgun. When I stated my plea the man beamed, "I'd be happy to!"

He climbed a stepladder and cut large boughs and handed them down to me. Minutes later, as I lifted the last armload into my car trunk, I said, "Sir, you've made the mother of a bride happy today."

"No, Ma'am," he said. "You don't understand what's happening here."

"What?" I asked.

"You see, my wife of sixty-seven years died on Monday. On Tuesday I received friends at the funeral home, and on Wednesday. He paused. I saw tears welling up in his eyes. "On Wednesday I buried her." He looked away. "On Thursday most of my out-of-town relatives went back home, and on Friday - yesterday - my children left. I nodded.

"This morning," he continued, "I was sitting in my den crying out loud. I miss her so much. For the last sixteen years, as her health got worse, she needed me. But now nobody needs me. This morning I cried, 'Who needs an eighty-six-year- old wore-out man? Nobody! 'I began to cry louder. 'Nobody needs me!' About that time, you knocked, and said, "Sir, I need you."

I stood with my mouth open.

He asked, "Are you an angel? The way the light shone around your head into my dark living room."

I assured him I was no angel.

He smiled. "Do you know what I was thinking when I handed you those magnolias?"

"No."

"I decided I'm needed. My flowers are needed. Why, I might have a flower ministry! I could give them to everyone! Some caskets at the funeral home have no flowers. People need flowers at times like that and I have lots of them. They're all over the backyard! I can give them to hospitals, churches - all sorts of places. You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to serve the Lord until the day He calls me home!"

I drove back to the church, filled with wonder. On Patsy's wedding day, if anyone had asked me to encourage someone who was hurting, I would have said, "Forget it! It's my only daughter's wedding, for goodness' sake! There is no way I can minister to anyone today." But God found a way. Through dead flowers.

"Life is not the way it's supposed to be. It's the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference."

CELL PHONE VS. BIBLE
Author unknown - Thanks to Annamarie Kresge in Virginia for sending this!

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phones?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several times a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go ... Hmmm ... where's my Bible?
Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.

TIPS AND TIDBITS
For Bird Lovers and Everyone Else ~ http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=2219299085003&source=jl999 Thanks to Alice Stoddard in Virginia who sent this card to me!

Knitted Dishcloth Directions ~ Thanks to Linda Crosby in Virginia for these directions! This pattern starts in one corner. You will have a triangular-shaped piece until half way through, but end up with a square.
Use Sugar 'N Cream (or comparable) 4 ply cotton knitting yarn and size 8 needles.
Cast on 4 stitches; Knit 4 stitches; Knit 2 stitches, yarn over, knit to end.
Continue this row until you have 43 or 45 stiches on needle (depending on size you want)
Next row: Knit 1 stitch, Knit 2 together, yarn over, knit 2 together, knit to end of row.
Continue until there are 4 stitches; bind off

Family Friendly TV ~ Procter & Gamble (P&G) and Wal-Mart are collaborating to produce TV shows for the whole family. The initial production is Secrets of the Mountain, a two-hour TV movie airing on NBC April 16. It’s about the struggles of a single mother and her three children who embark on an adventure. http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000012081.cfm Citizenlink is a ministry of Focus on the Family. Please go to http://www.citizenlink.org to receive daily news of which we as Christians should be knowledgeable.

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP FOR PENNIES PER LOAD
By Lois Breneman, © 2008, Revised 2010, Heart to Heart Newsletter, <A onclick="top.checkNewBrowser('[email protected]&count=1266606931')" href="mailto:jhbreneman@juno.">jhbreneman@juno.com

Last week I made two batches of this recipe for more economical laundry soap. If you enjoy putting a simple recipe together and saving money, you will enjoy this project. Let the children help. They will find it fascinating as well. Two batches took less than 30 minutes to make and I had fun doing it.

Commercial laundry detergents cost as much as 30 cents per load, even on sale or with a coupon, but you can get clothes just as clean for pennies per load, using this pure low suds recipe. Why not put that savings toward other things? It would be interesting to keep a record of the number of loads you do in a month or year and calculate your savings! Hang a calendar in your laundry with a pencil on a string to keep track. If you have children and do an average of ten loads each week, saving a quarter on each load, you would save $140 in one year.

Because this is a pure soap without fillers, dyes and strong perfumes, it is even safe for babies and anyone who is normally allergic to other laundry products. There's no need to purchase special detergent to prevent rashes or hives. If no one in your family is allergic, you may even add a small amount (1/4 - 1/2 ounce) of essential oil for fragrance.

This homemade soap works great in High Efficiency Washers, because there are very few suds.

You only need three ingredients which can all be found in most grocery stores (laundry aisle):
        1/3 bar of Fels-Naptha soap (Or 1 whole bar of Ivory or any other bar of soap)   $1.29 (for a bar of Fels-Naptha)
        1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (This is not baking soda)                       2.89
        1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax                                                                                        3.99

That's a total of only $8.17 to get started. You will be able to make three batches from the Fels-Naptha, ten from the washing soda and twenty batches from the Borax! One batch costs 93 cents for 61 loads of laundry, if you use 1/2 cup per load. That's just 1.52 cents per load! Can you believe that? Even if you double the amount, you would be paying about 3 cents per load! For High Efficiency Washers, using 1/4 cup, the cost would be a rock bottom .076 cents - 3/4 of a cent!

Instructions:
1. Score the Fels-Naptha soap to divide it into thirds. Using a cutting board, shave the bar of soap with a chef's knife. Fels-Naptha soap is soft so it's easy to do, as you thinly slice the end of the bar. Store leftover soap shavings in a Ziplock bag and label for future batches.

2. In a Dutch oven (about 6 quart pot) heat 6 cups of water and shavings from 1/3 bar of Fels-Naptha soap or an entire bar of Ivory or any other bar of soap over medium heat. I was able to make 2 batches in a 6 quart Dutch oven, before adding additional water.

3. Dissolve the soap completely; then stir in 1/2 cup Borax and 1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda and stir over the heat until it's all dissolved. Carefully pour hot solution into a 3 gallon or larger bucket. For each batch I used a three gallon bucket that dishwashing compound came in at Sam's.

4. Add 4 additional cups of hot water to the soap mixture bucket and stir well.

5. If you would like a mild scent, add 1/4 to 1/2 ounce of essential oil. Another option: Add a few cups of commercial detergent to the mixture for fragrance and extra cleaning power (if allergies aren't a problem in your family)..

6. Add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of cold water to this solution. Stir well and let set without stirring for 24 hours. It will have the consistency of a liquid gel, with no dye. Stir after 24 hours.

7. Keep a tight fitting lid on the liquid laundry solution. Measure 1/2 cup for each load of laundry (1/4 cup for High Efficiency washers). You may want to save your old liquid laundry detergent containers for storing and easy pouring. If you wish, add a few marbles to help mix the gel as you shake the bottle a little before using.

Notes:
*   For myself, I prefer this recipe with a little fragrance. Since I had a good bit of liquid laundry detergent on hand from sales, I poured a little into my homemade mixture for a nice scent.
*   You may want to experiment to see if 1/2 cup is enough to make your clothes fresh and clean. Even if you used a full cup, this recipe would still be much less expensive than most laundry detergents. I prefer using a full cup for most loads.
*   I still use fabric softener sheets in the dryer.
* This laundry soap is safe for HE washers, because it is low sudsing.
*   Fels-Naptha bars of soap are also great for stain removal. After removing a bar from its paper wrapper, I wrapped it with a terry cleaning cloth, and secured it with two rubber bands. That makes it easier to hold while rubbing on a garment stain that has first been made wet.
* We all know how dishcloths get smelly after a day of use. Let Fels-Naptha come to your rescue! Rub your dishcloth with the bar of soap to help remove the odor and stains. Zap the wet soapy cloth in the microwave for 1-2 minutes to kill germs and you've got a fresh clean dishcloth again!

Caution about Buckets: Some people store their liquid laundry solution in five gallon buckets, but let me caution you to keep a tight-fitting lid on it and out of reach of toddlers. If they get the lid off, they could fall in and drown! Please never store uncovered buckets of water or other liquids where tragic accidents could happen. Using much smaller buckets or old laundry containers would be safer.

Powdered Homemade Laundry Detergent

1 cup grated Fels-Naptha soap (I chop the bar with a chef's knife, then put in the food processor - sharp blade)
1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda (not baking soda)
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax

Mix and store in airtight container. For light loads, use 2 tablespoons.
For heavy loads, use 3 tablespoons.

To Make a Larger Batch ~ Shave 6 bars of Fels-Naptha soap with a chef's knife. Add 3 cups of Super Washing Soda and 3 cups of 20 Mule Team Borax. Mix well and store in an airtight container. I store the powdered soap in cookie tins and it keeps well for a very long time. Rather than put it directly into the laundry, I put it in a small bucket, run hot water over it, stir, add cold water and pour it into the washer with the clothes. That way I can be sure it will all dissolve, even when using cold or cool water in the washer, which I usually do.

White Vinegar - I add about a half cup of white vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser of the washer. This helps remove the soap residue and also acts as a softener, but without the vinegar, I noticed my clothes were softer just by using this homemade soap!

You can also do an Internet search to learn more about this wonderful homemade laundry soap. It's a great savings! Many Heart to Heart subscribers have written to tell me they tried it and really love it!

AN OLD RECIPE FOR "WARSHING" CLOTHES

Thanks to Elinor Wright in Virginia for sharing this!

Years ago a Kentucky grandmother gave a new bride the following recipe for washing clothes. It appears below just as it was written, and despite the spelling, has a bit of philosophy. This is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrapbook (with spelling errors and all). Some of the younger people might have to ask a grandparent to explain this.

Warshing Clothes

1. Bilt fire in backyard to heat kettle of rain water.
2. Set tubs so smoke wont blow in eyes if wind is pert.
3. Shave one hole cake of lie soap in bilin water.
4. Sort things, make 3 piles, 1 pile white, 1 pile colored, 1 pile work britches and rags.
5. To make starch, stir flour in cool water to smooth, then thin down with bilin water.
6. Take white things, rub dirty spots on board, scrub hard, and then bile. Rub colored, don't bile, just rinch and starch.
7. Take things out of kettle with broomstick handle, then rinch, and starch.
8. Hang old rags on fence.
9. Spread tea towels on grass.
10. Pore rinch water in flower bed.
11. Scrub porch with hot soapy water.
12. Turn tubs upside down.
13. Go put on clean dress, smooth hair with hair combs. Brew cup of tea, sit on a rock a spell and count your
blessings.

We're so fortunate to have all that we have. Paste this over your washer and dryer and next time when you think your life is bleak, read it again and give thanks for your blessings!

SPELLING TIPS FOR KIDS WITH ADHD
An Ounce of Ketchup, produced by A. L. Dash & Sons, PO Box 714 Graham, NC 27253 http://www.goaskmom.com
Used by permission

Each year people ask about spelling hints. It's a huge deal for kids - especially throughout elementary school. Here are some hints - new and old. And note that there's a link to even more at the end of the section:

~Go outside and spell while swinging - one letter on back, the next on front. (In this weather, you might need to use a rocking chair inside!)

~Spell the word on a large index card using a different colored marker for each syllable.

~Put the spelling to music. Like "J-E-L-L-O" or "B-O-L-O-G-N-A". (This works for locker combinations, too, and important phone numbers.)

~Try the "sail" method, in which you write the word on lines, adding a letter on each until it is done (and looks like a sail):

      b
      br
      bri
      brin
      bring

~Fill a gallon sized zip lock bag with a small layer of liquid tempera paint, close it and write a word on the bag.

~You spell the word out loud, and have your child tell you which word you're spelling.

~Practice writing and saying common suffixes by themselves without the word: ing, ion, tion, ed.

~Use sign language to spell.

~Let your child use a voice recorder to record the spelling and then listen to her own voice.

~Use play-dough to spell out the words.

~Use an electronic dictionary.

There are more hints at http://www.adhd-inattentive.com

BEEF SOUP PROVENCAL
Thanks to Becky Noell in Georgia for this recipe!

1 lb. lean ground beef
1/4 tsp. rosemary
1 can vegetable broth
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 can white beans, rinsed
1 can chopped tomatoes with garlic, basin and oregano with liquid
4 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach
Shredded Parmesan for garnish

Brown beef in a large pan; drain well. Stir in everything except spinach and cheese. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 5 minutes. Stir in spinach. Simmer 5 more minutes. Serve and sprinkle with cheese. Freezes well if you want to make a lot

BABY ANNOUNCEMENT
Sheldon and Twylene Musser picked up a precious three month old little girl, Bellamarie, as their foster child on February 27, 2010, hoping to adopt her. Twylene's article on their journey through infertility is at the top of this newsletter. Please let us all pray for a smooth and speedy transition of "foster child to adopted child" for Bellamarie. I pray she will be blessed to have Sheldon and Twylene as her permanent loving parents very soon, and that she will learn about the Lord Jesus and accept Him into her heart at an early age, as I pray all of our children and grandchildren will do.

PRECIOUS GEMS
Ladies, thanks so much to all you dear ladies for allowing me to include your precious gems in Heart to Heart! I'd love to hear the cute and funny things you or your grown children said as a young child, as well as current gems. Years ago I used to entitle this section, "Out of the Mouths of Bab**," but had to change that after the newsletter started coming to some ladies as spam! Can you believe that? It's so sad that such a sweet and innocent word has been distorted. The words, "Precious Gems" seemed to fit, and so here are some more of those treasures for you to enjoy!

Caleb, 4, the other night said, "Mama, since you're sick, you can sleep with one of my stuffed animals." He gave me his little lion and then said to it, "Now don't you bite Mama!" The lion roared an "OK". Caleb then said, "Mama, you be SURE and tell me in the mornin' if he bites you." I said I would. 🙂 How thankful I am for these three God-given treasures!! 🙂 ~ Katie Gay in Virginia

Susan Caldwell in Virginia, shares two Precious Gems from a long time ago - both about her nephew, Mark, who is now 36: One day when Mark's mother hugged him, he simply replied, "When you hug me Mom, you make hearts pop out all over me."

Mark and his mother went to the doctor one day. It was before he began school. He had to have his shots. He cried. When they came out into the waiting room which by now was full with parents and children, in a very loud voice he announced, "Listen up customers, they're giving shots in there and they hurt!!!"

The next two were sent by Vickie Butterfield in Idaho:
My 6 year old daughter lost her first tooth a couple of weeks ago. When I showed her the tooth she says, "Mom, is that blood? I think I need some pizza." (to this I'm thinking.....when most females are stressed they want chocolate. My daughter wants pizza lol) Dad surprised her with pizza for dinner 🙂

Last May, about the time my grandson turned 8, he said something and had the actions of my wonderful husband. I told him, "Charlie, I think you have been hanging around Papa too much. You are beginning to sound and act just like him." To this he answered, "Nana, Papas are like sugar, you can just never have too much of him." My daughter (his mother) took this quote and made a framed picture collage of Papa and Charlie photos for Papa for Father's Day with the words throughout the collage. It was awesome!

A mom was driving her five year old son to McDonald's one day and they passed a car accident. Whenever the Mom saw something terrible like that, she would always say a prayer for those who might be hurt, so she pointed and said to her son, "We should pray."
From the back seat she heard his earnest request: "Please, God, don't let those cars block the entrance to McDonald's."

After school one day, a young first-grade boy was sitting at the kitchen table, eating his afternoon snack, when he blurted out, "Mom, the teacher was asking me today if I have any brothers or sisters who will be coming to school."
The boy's mother replied, "That's nice of her to take such an interest, dear. What did she say when you told her you are the only child?" She just said, "Thank goodness!"

AN OVERVIEW OF OUR RETIREMENT TRIP
By Lois

               Recently my husband retired as a mechanical engineer after almost forty years of hard work. He hopes to continue part time as a consultant for a while if everything works out as planned. But for the past five weeks he's been off - with me! We just returned from a three week and three day trip of a lifetime in the deeper south, missing several deep snows and frigid temperatures here in Virginia! The only other time we took a three-week trip was a year before our first child was born.
                We started out with six days in Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, enjoying the historic districts in both cities. Seeing the very old homes dating back to the beginning of our country and touring several of them were my favorite part. We did a lot of walking as well as touring via trolley and horse carriage.  Oh yes, and we ate a delicious buffet lunch at Paula Deen's restaurant in Savannah!   And, yes, there really was butter on most everything!
                Another day we drove past the Daytona Beach Speedway, hearing the roaring sound of tires on the track during the Rolex Race. An interesting day was spent at Cape Canaveral at the Kennedy Space Center, before driving to Orlando, where we walked through the Epcot Center most of the 12 hours spent there - carrying umbrellas in the warm rain. It was still a very enjoyable time. We test drove a speeding car at over 60 mph, and went on a trip to Mars. I don't recommend the Mars trip! We ended our day with dinner in a French restaurant, and a spectacular fireworks display over the lake with music, fountains and a lit up display of the world.
                The next day we drove through intermittent heavy downpours of rain, but were still able to enjoy seeing many beautiful orange groves with loaded trees and take good pictures at times, as we headed toward Sanibel Island and Captiva Island, off the coast of Fort Myers.  It was raining hard when we arrived, but thankfully it stopped an hour later. What a lovely place, where it was in the 70's and into the 80's during our six days there! My cousin/sister-in-law, Elaine, was right when she said, "Skip the rest and stay there the whole time!" We stayed on the narrowest section of Captiva Island with our rooms and screened-in porch overlooking the bay, and the Gulf of Mexico beach was just a short walk across the road. The most beautiful seashells can be found there, and I loved the search! There are piles of shells in one section on Sanibel Island and a digging tool helped to find many treasures. I really enjoyed finding, cleaning, sorting and identifying forty-seven different kinds of seashells there, after purchasing a book on seashells found in that part of Florida. The breakfasts were so good where we stayed - fresh pineapple and strawberries, and other goodies each morning. We ate sandwiches on the porch while watching the pelicans, enjoyed cooking in some nights, and went out a couple evenings while there. As we left the Islands, we visited the Sanibel Shell Museum. Just looking at those magnificant shells, you know there is a God who gave us all things to enjoy!
                Later we spent the night at St. Pete Beach, and a city in south Georgia on our way for a week with our daughter, son-in-law and two of our grandchildren, which is always enjoyable.  Justin's daddy and Paw Paw were able to join him at his Christian school one morning for "Donuts with Dad," and I volunteered to help serve. We got to see Justin play Upward Basketball, where his dad is his coach. I was surprised to hear my two year old granddaughter was saying, "Oh my goodness" a lot. Later I commented to my daughter about how cute that was, and she told me Ryan Elizabeth picked that up from me! She wasn't saying it until we arrived. Oh my goodness, they absorb everything we say, don't they?
                As great a time as we had on the trip, it is always so good to be home again! A friend watered my houseplants for me, and the African violets and Easter catcus greeted me with lots of pretty pink blooms! The second evening we were home our water heater quit, which works together with our heat, thus no heat either. We piled on the blankets that night and the next day it was fixed. We're so grateful to the Lord that didn't happen while we were gone, with the temperatures so low. We're also thankful for a safe trip, no car trouble, or illness for us or our family during that time.
                Since we're home, my amazing organized engineer husband already mapped out on the computer what we spent on gas, housing, food, events, parking, miscellaneous items, even the percentages of each. He was thrilled that it was less than he had planned. It was a wonderful trip and we thank the Lord for His love, care and many blessings!
                This may have been a "Retirement Trip," but I'm not ready to retire yet! Heart to Heart will continue as long as the Lord wants it to go on.

Many Heart to Heart ladies and their families need our prayers,
so please remember to pray for each Heart to Heart lady as you receive your newsletter.

(¨`·.·´¨) God bless you and your family and keep you in His loving care!

`·.¸(¨`·.·´¨) And remember, I love to hear from you dear ladies!

`·.¸.·´ Your Heart to Heart friend,

Lois

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