My girls

These are my big girls, Ally and Meghan. I could not be more proud of these girls if they grew up to be presidents. They are my gifts from God. They are living proof that if we take the time to train our children, they will use this training to God's glory and our benefits.

Starting last Saturday, morning sickness (or more accurately, all day sickness) began. It has gotten steadily worse each day, until no longer does food sound good and even slightly rocking in the rocking chair is enough to make my stomach turn.

I have been slightly less sick first thing in the morning, so I've been trying to quickly get myself and the babies ready, my bed made and the laundry going. Their school schedules are not difficult because I can make those from my chair.

When I was pregnant with the boys, I was so ill that I was completely bed-ridden for the first and last trimesters. This time around, I am trying my hardest to get myself prettied-up and down to the recliner if for no other reason than to be an adult presence for my kiddos.

In spite of this set back, I just walked downstairs where I found a sparkling house, happy boys, the washer and dryer both going, fresh banana bread baking, and dinner in the oven.

My girls wanted to see me happy and they have been successful.

I remember when they were little and they wanted to help cook or wash the dishes or do the laundry, thinking "I could do this so much faster and so much neater by myself!", but I would take the time to stand over them showing them how to do their jobs well. I was not always patient mind you. I still get frustrated when a job isn't done the way I like it done. Nearly six kids and I'm still way too uptight:-(

The rewards I am now reaping have made those hours well worth it. The girls do a better job at keeping house than I do. They sing while they work, they play games to while away the hours spent at the kitchen sink, they quote favorite movie lines. There is a general attitude of cheerfulness and contentedness while they go about their work.

God promises us that if we "Train up our child in the way he (or she) should go, when they are old they will not depart from it." Although my children are not old yet, I am already seeing Him fulfill His promise to me.

I am so proud of my girls, and so grateful that God gave them to me!

Delicious Dinner!!

Every time I sit down here to write, my first thought is "I wish I had time to do this more often." But life just seems to keep getting in the way of computer time!
Christmas was extremely busy, even though I kept on looking for ways to make it laid back. I will say, that this was the best Christmas our family has ever had. We enjoyed each other so much. Jonny got to take off work basically the entire week of Christmas, Nate and Steph came with their precious babies, the food was delicious, all five little ones were completely quiet while Papa read Luke 2, we got so many gifts that we kept losing children under all the wrapping paper, we watched all the Christmas movies, I made toffee three times due to the high demand, we were all healthy.
I felt God's blessings this year more than I ever have.

I don't usually have as hard of a time going into January as I have this year. I was really sad to see the Christmas decorations come down, to take down the lights, to stop baking, and to have to stop the general attitude in the house of vacation.
Starting school this year has been a little difficult for me and for the girls. This could be partially attributed to the fact that I discovered the day after Christmas that the sixth Jeppsen baby is on their way.
This particular pregnancy has exhausted me so far. No sickness as of yet, just that weary feeling that starts when my eyes open in the morning and lasts until they close again at night. Maybe it's because I'm getting older:-(

Well onto the purpose for this post. I mentioned tonight on Facebook that we were having a feast for dinner, and was asked to put the menu along with recipes on here. So here we go.
Tonight I made Roast Beef with pan gravy, mashed red potatoes, glazed baby carrots, broccoli with cheese sauce, rolls, and chocolate layer cake. I should technically be cutting way back on the fat intake after a rather rich December, but I just love cooking in January! Not to mention that I got a new double oven that I couldn't wait to use.

The recipe for the roast is on one of my first posts entitled "Regarding Roast" and the chocolate layer cake, I'm sad to say, was from a box, but the rest of the recipes I will put on here for you.

Glazed Baby Carrots
Put about 4 cups of baby carrots into a skillet full of boiling water and let boil just about five minutes. Drain the water and add a half a stick of butter to the carrots. Allow the butter to melt and then put in a cup of OJ and 1/4 cup of honey and let simmer about ten minutes stirring every couple of minutes.

Mashed Red Potatoes
My entire cooking life, I have used Russett potatoes for making mashed potatoes. That is until I went to my in-laws the week of Christmas and had my mother-in-laws mashed red potatoes. They were so delicious that I new I had to change my ways. I'm not exactly sure how she made hers, but I just scrubbed and boiled about six pounds of them until they were easy to cut. Then I drained them and put them in my mixer. I had to use the bread hook because they were to thick for my whisk attachment to handle. Then I slowly poured in enough whole milk to make them nice and creamy and added way to much butter and salt to tell you about. You put in as much as you like. They were amazing!! We poured the pan gravy over them that I made with the help of my sister-in-law, using the roast drippings, gravy mix, salt, pepper, and beef broth. Delicious!!!

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
I just steamed a bunch of broccoli in the microwave for about six minutes and then made the best cheese sauce I've ever tasted. I've always just melted Velveeta and added a little milk to it, but this was a million times better! You put about a cup and a half of extra sharp cheddar cheese, a block of cream cheese, and four slices of American cheese into the food processor. Add about 3 to 4 tablespoons of whole milk and about 5 drops of Tabasco sauce. Blend it until it's completely smooth and then put it in a double boiler and slowly melt it stirring with a whisk until it's nice and creamy. Then pour over the broccoli. Even Jonny liked this recipe and he really prefers his broccoli without cheese.

It really was a delicious dinner although it took me about three hours to make, not to mention the time it's taking the girls to clean up from it. I usually try to keep the kitchen clean while I'm cooking, but because the girls were at art class and I had all three babies by myself, not to mention about ten different foods cooking at the same time, the place looks like a hurricane ran through it. Thank goodness for big girls;-)

I am off now to sit on the couch and try relax despite the fact that the boys destroyed the living room while "watching a movie" this evening. The question is, can I actually sit and ignore it, or will I have to clean it up first. Hhhmmm.....
Off to clean up!

Christmas Traditions

Look at me will you?! Two days in a row!! I am sitting at my desk surrounded by Christmas lights. The fireplace making the room cozy and warm while the wind is whipping outside. The house smells like cinnamon and pomanders. Jonny is heading out to get the four of us bigger folk some dinner so we can have a fun evening sitting in front of the fireplace and watching "A Christmas Story", one of my all time favorites.
Both boys just went down for bed with Vicks in the humidifier to hopefully soothe their atrocious coughs, and Ally is reading a book to Molly so she can head off to cuddle under her covers.
All is peaceful and quiet in the house.
My Christmas shopping is officially done, and as of this afternoon, most of my gifts are wrapped and I got my Christmas cards ready to be put in the mail.
Things feel strangely calm around here.
I thought I would steal a few moments to share with you some of our families favorite traditions. I was recently asked to teach a class on traditions in a friends church, so these are all very fresh in my mind.
When I was first married, Jonny and I put up our very formal tree sometime the beginning of October. I was bound and bent on starting up the fireplace even though it was Indian summer. The house got so hot that we had the air conditioner running and all the windows open as well. I decorated my house with my few pewny what-nots and bought an Ann Murray cassette.
I wanted so badly to have a certain type of Christmas, but being a new bride, I had no idea what that certain type of Christmas should look like.
A few years later, after Ally and Meghan came along, I decided we needed a more friendly tree and so I hit the after Christmas sales and stocked up on snowman, Santa, and candy ornaments.
We also started making Christmas cookies and having a tree-decorating night with Nana and Papa and all kinds of finger foods.
Then as our family continued to grow, I discovered the pickle ornament. After seeing someone open one of these interesting ornaments at an ornament exchange and hearing the oohs and aahs that filled the room, I was instantly curious. The tradition is to hide the pickle somewhere in the depths of the tree and whoever finds it first gets to open the first gift.
In our house, we let whoever finds it, be the gift passer-outer. Our kids really enjoy this tradition.

Another tradition we have is going to Silver Dollar City and having the kids picture made with Santa. Then we pay to have it put in an ornament and hang it on the tree. Our tree is covered with ornaments that start when Meghan was a baby to now having five children surrounding the smiling Santa (which by the way, our family has deemed the "Real Santa").
I have come to the conclusion that by the time our kids are grown, I will have to have a tree that is especially designated to hold the Silver Dollar City ornaments.
Something else we've started in the past few years, is a shopping day with me and the big girls.
When we first started, it consisted of lunch at McDonalds and trying to make their five dollars stretch for everyone on their list. It has now become on of my favorite nights of the year. We went last night and had the best time! The girls now have allowances, not to mention the little odd jobs we've found for them around the house the last couple of months. So they had a nice stash put aside to spend. We started out with a little shopping, then had sushi at Oceans Zen. I quickly figured out that my girls are growing up when the host kept insisting that we wait in the bar and have a drink until our table was ready. We spent dinner laughing over how easy it is to embarrass Ally and how frequently Meghan would look at herself in the mirror to make sure that the face she just made, didn't in any way detract from her lovely outfit.
Then we headed off to the mall to finish our shopping, then ended the night with "The Chronicles of Narnia". It was a marvelous evening!

I have realized through the years that you don't force traditions. Traditions happen slowly and often by accident. You don't necessarily use everyone you grew up with. You make your own. Write them down. I recommend buying a Christmas journal. It might sound silly, but I keep track of every gift I buy each year, how much it cost, what we had for dinner, what parties we hosted, who we sent Christmas cards to, and how God has worked on our family that year to make that particular Christmas different from the one before. I so enjoy pulling it out and reviewing each year.
I hope that you have found your special Christmas traditions that you enjoy with your family. I would love to hear about some of them. I'm always looking for something new to try each year.

Good night readers:-)

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!!

Well I'm finally getting a few minutes together to post about the season that I have been looking foward to posting about since last February. But now that it's upon me, I haven't been able to find two seconds together. My problem is that I'm constantly trying to get everything done well before Christmas so that the days before, I have nothing to do but play board games with my girls, sip hot cocoa, and watch Christmas movies. That day usually comes January 2nd when it's time to start school again:-(

The Springfield News Leader came this past Monday morning and took pictures of our house to feature in the paper Sunday December 19th. So between getting ready for that, shopping for the perfect gifts, wrapping these perfect gifts, making Christmas candy, making sure the pantry is stocked up with all the last minute things that one needs to make Christmas dinner that the store always runs out of, and repairing all of the ornaments that the boys keep breaking, the hot cocoa and board games evenings have been few and far between.

Every year starting in December, I have this nightmare that it's Christmas Eve and I haven't done anything. The tree isn't up, the gifts aren't bought, the food isn't prepared. Ever watched "Christmas with the Kranks"? That is my nightmare so perfectly pictured, that while everyone else is laughing, I'm biting my nails hoping that this year she gets to the ham in time, or that Frosty doesn't fall off the roof, or that the store does have white chocolate.

You needn't worry about me though. I am determined to relax the remainder of this month. I am anxiously anticipating my shopping trip with the big girls tonight along with dinner and a movie. I had a wonderful evening in Branson with Jonny last night looking at lights and eating a delicious dinner. I am stocked up on hot cocoa and I bought a new board game yesterday while Meghan and I were out shopping for winter gear just in case in snows this year.

That is the one bummer about living in this area, is that inevitably, if we buy snow gear it never snows, and if we don't guess what? A snowstorm.

Apparently everyone else in Springfield has realized the same thing. Which is why last year when Christmas Eve day came and the big snow was in the forecast, everyone and their brother, including my husband and daughters ran for the nearest Target or Wal-Mart to see if they could snag a pair of boots or a sled.

Oh well. This year I will be prepared no matter what happens. As Jonny pointed out last night, a Proverbs 31 woman doesn't worry about the cold because her house is dressed in scarves and snow boots;-)

I am planning on redecorating my blog next week after the pictures that the New Leader took are available. It's positively silly how excited I am to see pictures of my own house.

I also am going to try my hardest to get on here again in the next couple of days and post some of my favorite holiday recipes for you.

Strawberry salad, English toffee, popcorn balls, and buckeyes are just some of the recipes I am anxious to share with you.

I need to skidder off now to get myself ready for my night with Ally and Meg. If you're out looking at Christmas lights one night, be sure to drive by and see Jonny's masterpiece. The house looks better than it ever has this year!! He even did the tree house!!!

Merry Christmas to you all!

Great Fall Meals

This is without a doubt my favorite time of year! It always seems to make me want to be in my kitchen more than usual. I love pouring over soup recipes, trying out new desserts, and setting out the honey and apple butter to go on whatever bread I put with dinner. I keep a candle burning on the counter and light the old oil lamp to make it feel even cozier. I never feel like grilling or making light meals in October or November. I always find myself craving something more savory and hearty. I have already blogged about different soup recipes and my chili, but there are so many great things to put in the big pot and let simmer all day. This past weekend, I found a huge, bright red, dutch oven at TJMaxx and decided that it belonged on my stove. It is now full of beans and the leftover ham from last night. The whole house smells wonderful and I have the peace of mind that dinner is already prepared and all I have to do is pop some biscuits in the oven this evening.

I found a new soup recipe last year and made it again last week. It's called Taco Soup and is really hearty and delicious. All you do is brown 1 and 1/2 pounds of ground chuck with 1 onion diced, then add a can of pinto beans and a can of chili beans, a large can of diced tomatoes, a can of rotel, two cans of chili with no beans, 1 pound of Velveeta, and a packet of taco seasoning. After this has simmered for just a bit, add in 2 cups of sour cream and heat through. Serve it with cornbread and you have a simple, delicious meal!

Another great meal to remember is ham. It is a little expensive but it goes so far and makes so many meals. Last night, I basted my pre-cooked ham with a sauce made out of yellow mustard, brown sugar, and coke. Then I slow cooked it covered, all afternoon. Right before I served it, I basted it one more time then let it cook without the lid on for about ten minutes.
After that meal, you have ham sandwiches for the next couple of days, and then when you're tired of sandwiches, dump it into a pot with your favorite canned beans, add extra water and some minced onion.
You have just served at least four meals off of one ham!

If you're family likes spicy Cajun food, I found a recipe for jambalaya and changed it up a little. It is one of my family's favorites.
I'll try to give you the recipe as close to the way I make it as possible.

Jambalaya
Brown 2 cloves of garlic and 2 tablespoons of butter in a large pot. Add 2 14 and 1/2 ounce cans of diced tomatoes, 2 cans of chicken broth, and two cups of uncooked instant rice, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer about half an hour. Then add a package of smoked sausage cut up and browned, cooked ham or chicken (whichever your prefer) and a cup or two of shrimp (depending on how much you like shrimp. We LOVE it so I add quite a bit.).
Then add spices to your liking. Salt, pepper, Tony Cacheras, (the more of this you add, the more Cajun it will taste. I put in alot!), garlic salt, whatever spices you like in your Cajun food.

Of course don't forget roast! I posted different roast recipes back in January under "Regarding Roasts" so if you need a new idea for your roast, check back in my blog archives.

Well I have to hop off here now and go start one of the huge baskets of ironing screaming at me from down in the laundry room. I hope this gets you in the cooking mood and if it doesn't, then read "Farmer Boy" by Laura Ingalls Wilder. If that doesn't get you into your kitchen, then nothing will!
Bye for now!!

It's finally chilly outside!! Time for chili inside!!

I am determined to mend my ways when it comes to my blogging habits. I have had my mind fuller than usual with school, schedules, meal planning, church, and other new activities.
But I've really missed getting on here and sharing my thoughts with you!
It has seemed for the past three months, that my imagination has been on vacation or otherwise engaged, keeping me from coming up with any new and exciting ideas to give you. But I must admit that I've been looking forward to fall and holiday posts since I first started blogging.

I absolutely LOVE this time of year!! I find myself marveling at God's ingenious handiwork more than usual when it blinds me every time I get in the car or walk down the road. I love looking at the beautiful colors, taking the kids to the pumpkin place, watching Ally and Meg rake up the front yard then run in and get the little ones to come make a mess of their piles, sitting around the firepit making smores, and making chili.
Which leads me to today's topic. Chili seems to have the widest variety of recipes of any food that you can prepare. There is chicken chili, chili with beans, chili over rice, white chili, spicy chili, turkey chili, slow cooked chili, canned chili, shrimp chili, green chili, and vegetarian chili. I have never in my life tasted two bowls of chili from two different kitchens that tasted even at all the same. I have been to chili cook-offs where there were twenty different kinds of chili and they were all completely different.
I have seen people use all different kinds of secret ingredients to make their chili special. I've heard of peanut butter, sour cream, ground cloves, coke, cider vinegar, mushrooms, brown sugar, cheese, cumin, jalapenos, onion, peppers, barley, and carrots.
What is also funny, is that without fail, that woman's family thinks that their Mom's chili is "The best!". I totally agree!!

When I first got married, my version of chili consisted of ground beef, canned tomatoes and ground cloves. I was perfectly content with that but my poor husband was definitely not. He preferred his chili full of huge kidney beans and poured over rice. Being from the south, I had simply never heard of filling your chili with beans and pouring it over rice. But wanting to make his stomach happy, I decided to come up with my own recipe.

After attending a yearly fall party at some friends house, I was introduced to a very hearty chili recipe. This one was very beany with very little juice in it. The exact opposite of my recipe. Jonny could only have been happier if their had been a large barrel of rice next to it.
I got the recipe from this lady and for a year or so, followed it faithfully. My problem was that I HATE kidney beans!! I think they are way too...thick? Meaty? Beany? Well too something or other.
I also like a little more juice in mine, just in case you want to dip your cracker in or crumble up a little cornbread in it.
So I took this recipe, and did what I very often do. I changed it!
Not everything mind you. This lady had found some great ingredients that add an incredible flavor to any chili. Such as cider vinegar, and sauteed onions.
I have now found the perfect chili for my family. Every single one of us is happy with it. At least, that's what they tell me.
I have never tried to write my recipe down, because I do it a little different every time since it is all in my head. This will be my greatest effort in sharing it with you.

Brown 1 to 1 and 1/2 pounds of ground chuck with 1 or 2 large onions until no pink remains. I don't always drain off the grease unless their is alot of it. If there is just a little in the bottom, it adds really great flavor. Then I add a can of black beans, a can of great northern beans, a can of chili beans, and a can of pinto beans. Be sure and drain these. Next I put in a large can of tomato sauce and a large can of diced petite tomatoes. Then I add a package of mild chili seasoning. Stir all this letting it simmer as you keep adding things. As far as my spices go, this part will certainly frustrate you, because I leave all my spices on the counter and keep adding more of this and more of that until it tastes just right. Which would explain why I'm always full before it's done.
I add lots of chili powder. Probably two tablespoons full. Then I throw in two bay leaves, salt, pepper, parsley, and about three tablespoons of cider vinegar. I also toss in a pinch of dry pepper flakes and cayenne pepper. Just enough to make Jonny happy without killing the rest of us.
The cider vinegar is definitely the trick. Don't leave it out!!

This is the best I can do, and in case you haven't found your secret chili recipe yet, you can share mine. As long as you promise to do a little thing or two to make officially "your own":-)

My goal is to see you next Tuesday around this same time!

Time For School!!

Just to let you know what is going on with us, school has officially begun in the Jeppsen house.
This is my first year to teach three children and I have been a little concerned about the scheduling around here. I have been trying to figure out how I am going to teach both big girls their school, teach Molly how to write her name and read, keep the boys out of trouble and sufficiently entertained, clean house, do laundry, iron, grocery shop, cook, sort fall clothes, give each child the attention they need, etc. Not to mention running each morning, making sure that I have the time I need with God, and time to visit with Jonny.
The stress has gotten to me. But it is times like these that God steps in and gives us wisdom when we ask for it. This time He gave it to me in the form of my Mom and a very experienced couple that we are friends with. These people gave me the best advice on making sure that I am training their character before anything else, making sure not to be so hard on myself that I take no joy in this experience, and the best advice of all...realizing that God is able to equip them for the plans He has for them, even if I do not have the knowledge to give them all that they might need for these plans.

The burden that had been weighing down on me for some weeks, slowly began to lift and along with the burden being lifted, came the ability thus far, to be able to make things work.

Last night I made a schedule for the girls and put it on top of the books that they would need to work with today. My girls really like order and knowing what is expected of them.
This saved them having to come to me all day and ask what they should be doing next. They were able to work quietly all day only needing my help a couple of times.

This was my schedule today:
7:00- Up and at 'em (Me and the big girls)
Quiet time for me, the girls make bed, clean room, get dressed, read Bible
7:30- Boys up, Breakfast
8:00- Girls chores, Boys movie, Me laundry
8:45- Make sure little ones are dressed and house is in order
9:00- Girls schoolwork, Boys play time in the playroom, Me pay bills
10:00- Boys movie, Molly letters and counting
10:30- Boys quiet reading time, Molly flash cards
11:00- All kids outside for half hour, me more quiet time ( I needed more than usual today)
11:30- Girls schoolwork, little kids play together in the bedroom
12:00- Lunch for the little ones then down for a LONG nap
12:30- Lunch with girls and a little TV
1:00- Girls more school, Molly movie, me laundry

That is basically all that was scheduled for today. The girls finished school at about 3:00, boys napped until 3:30, Molly played outside or in her room, and I made dinner and checked schoolwork.
The day was good but extremely long. I'm afraid that bedtime for the entire family is going to come shortly after this post is completed.
Due to this rather busy schedule, I'm afraid that for at least a little while, blogs will continue to be few and far between. Just during this one, I have been interrupted about seven hundred times! Good luck to all you out there who are either just sending all their kids off to school, just starting school at your own house, or taking care of your homes and husbands as summer comes to a close.
Hope to talk to you soon:~)