Peanut Butter anyone?

Peanut butter and bacon are two of our family's most favorite foods.  We eat a lot of peanut butter....not so much bacon (although it is always part of our Saturday morning breakfast)....but a lot of peanut butter!!!  What I hate about our love of peanut butter is that the really good peanut butter - the stuff without all the sugar, hydrogenated oils, mono and diglyscerides, salt, and other additives - is sooo expensive.  So, today when I saw the buy one 3 lb. bag of peanuts for 5$ and get one free deal, I bought 6 lbs (10$) and got 6 lbs for free.  What am I going to do with 12 lbs of peanuts?

I am going to put them into these containers.... 

In my house, we totally support the exploitation of child labor, and my children actually enjoy helping.  So....AWAY WITH THE SHELLS.... 

Now comes either the really exciting part....or....the really disappointing part.  I know we are eating healthier by making our own peanut butter.  All we do is put the nuts in a blender (at some point I need to get a food processor - or a heavy duty blender ;)) and add a little olive oil to make it creamy.  But, am I really saving any money?  Look at how many nuts came from a 3 lb bag....

Chris weighed it out and we got about 2 lbs of actual nuts from a 3 lb bag....

The containers in the above picture hold 24 oz.  A 26 oz. jar of "healthy" store-bought peanut butter costs $5.99 or more.  So....how many ounces will our 2 lbs of peanuts make, and are we saving money by making our own peanut butter?  Let's ask the home schooled kid....

Joshua says that if I paid 10$ for 12 lbs of peanuts, then 3 lbs of peanuts - or one bag - costs $2.50.  If we can fill the 24 oz jar with the peanut butter we make from the 2 lbs of peanuts we got from the 3 lb bag of peanuts, then we will have made 24 oz of healthy peanut butter for $2.50, AND....we saved money....

I had my doubts when I started pulverizing the nuts in the blender....

....but in the end, the 24 oz container was filled to the very tippy top!!!!

There you have it....our homemade healthy jar of peanut butter for $2.50. 

My kids can't wait to shell the other 3 bags!!!

I am editing this post after reading the update to the story I gave you the link to this morning.  You can read the update HERE.
 
I heard a scripture during Bible study this past Sunday that literally blew my mind:

2Corinthians12:9-10 ~ "But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."


On any given day it is pretty impossible for me to imagine how powerful God is - and I have tried to wrap my mind around how big God is (especially when my little - and big - kiddos are asking me questions about God, faith, and their futures) ....it truly is unfathomable - but to think that that unfathomable power is made "perfect" in weakness, is truly mind blowing.  When I read the update for little Katie-bird, that scripture was quickened to my mind and heart.  What must God's perfect power be like?  Oh to only see...........
 
This story may give us a glimpse into God's power....truly, Katie is weak....she is weak in body, Spirit, and power over her situation....but God's power is made "perfect" in her weakness.....I don't know about you, but this is better than any suspense movie or soap opera on TV.....I will be staying tuned!!   *********************************************************************************
I had a blog post all ready for today, but I am going to post it tomorrow.  Last night I talked to my sister-in-law, Hope.  She does foster care, and the stories I hear from her are always a tug on my heart.  Today I read Patti's Blog, and I was brought to my knees in tears.  My little Reagan just woke up, and he is snuggled up on my lap.  As I sit here holding my little miracle, my heart aches for the little miracles in the stories that I have heard and read about in the last 12 hours.  My heart is so heavy with grief for all the little miracles all over the world that will never know the love, peace, and comfort that my little guy knows right now.  Please go HERE and pray with me today for this little girl and her family to be. 

Elli loves Minnie

Elli learned to say Minnie this past weekend - actually, she says "Mimmi".  It was so sweet to see her make the connection between the word and the mouse!!  She loves her Minnie Mouse....

So much so that she was willing to share her Graham cracker with her.... 

Blocks and Lincoln Logs....probably one of the best classic toys.  Does anybody ever really outgrow building with blocks and Lincoln Logs?  I know I haven't.  My kids go through building phases....most of the time, Legos is the preferred building material - which is really cool and I will sometimes join in and build with the twins.  There are times, however, when the classic blocks and Lincoln Logs make an appearance, and I am quickly reminded of how cool these building toys are.  As a kid, I would spend hours with my Lincoln Logs.  For the past couple of days my kids (and myself;)) have been busy building towers and houses and towns....

Joshua loves building with JENGA blocks....

The little dude on the top is "Ray" - he is a little character that has been in this family since Brandon was a little baby, and he has always been a preferred toy.... 

Elli was very good about waiting until her brother gave her the OK before unleashing her destructive swipes at his towers.... 

Joshua didn't miss out on building part of the Lincoln Log village - he built the snow house up on the mountains (or staircase;)).... 

Trevor, Jason and Reagan built the Town down in the valley (below the staircase).... 

On the outskirts of their Town in the valley was an Indian Village, and a dolphin aquarium.... 

I think I should change the name of my blog to "This Family's Got Talent!"!!

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Edited to add Brandon's creation of the Pony Express Hotel....

Joshua said he added one of the roof pieces and should therefore be allowed to be photographed with the Hotel.... 

One of our other favorite pasttimes these days has been playing Bananagrams.  It is a very fast paced version of Scrabble.  In one round of Bananagrams, Brandon managed to spell "Antidisestablishmentarianism".  I figured that a picture of that should be included in the blog about

"This Family's Got Talent!"!! 

Very Impressive!!!

I know I already posted today, but I actually got little pigtails in Elli's hair today and I had to show everyone....



My babies are growing so fast....



Reagan the story teller....

This summer my boys have all been practicing their hunting skills on the Wii.  We have a game called Cabela's Outdoor Adventures, where you can hunt and fish.  It isn't an easy game to play...for me...you have to stalk your prey without being seen or sensed....you have the option of calling them into range and spraying yourself with some non-smelly stuff....then you have to make a clean shot without totally destroying the animal or the meat and you get points for your kill.  The twins have been hunting with their big brothers and having a blast.  Reagan was so excited about a kill that he made that he came in to tell me about it.  Now, you have to know that Reagan is a storyteller in the truest sense of the word.  He can rattle off a story off the top of his head that won't end until you tell him "OK Reagan, wrap it up".  So he came in to tell me that he was hiding in the woods looking for elk and he used the animal caller gadget to call the elk.  He was facing one direction getting ready to aim and shoot when he heard something behind him and he changed his view in the game and an entire herd of elk was there waiting for him to take them out one by one.  He was so animated telling me this story that I asked him if he would tell it to my camera.  Of course, he said yes, but.....when he started to tell the story to the camera the story changed.  I kept filming hoping that the story would eventually get told, and the cutest thing happened....he started to whisper to the camera that he was just pretending.  So the real story of his hunt with Trevor isn't on film, but the pretend hunt for a crocodile with his dad is on film....ENJOY!!