Hannah's Heartstrings

Welcome to my week!


My idea was to post everyday for this week and give detailed descrptions of what went on. But that probably isn't going to happen. :P So what I am going to do is just post as often as I can and give updates on the days I miss. So here goes!

Monday:
I will admit...I had a rough morning. I got very grumpy for a little while (needing nourishment and mad about the broken microwave). :sigh: But I got some breakfast in me and took all my vitamins and calmed down... ;P
I ended up taking Charlie (17) to Walmart for a haircut with Danny (15) and Grace (8.5). We also went to JoAnn Fabrics and got fabris and notions for a Regency dress I'm making for Grace for the homeschoolers Christmas Regency Ball we are going to in December. :D It's going to be lucious. :D
I spent the rest of the day talking with Mom (being that it was her day off, I was soaking it up), and just hanging out in the kitchen.
I spent a little time reading a book I got from the library, "A Man Worth Waiting For" by Jackie Kendall, which is really good! (albeit from a dating perspective, but eh, I take what I can from it.)
Watched a little bit of the movie "Iron Will".
Did a small bit of blog icon graphic designing.
I am now listening to music on my MP3 player while typing, thinking up ideas for a venture I'm working on, needing to write, hoping to try out a new crochet pattern for hat I just found, planning on starting up my Etsy shop this week, and lots more...

More updates to come!!! :D

Love,
Hannah

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking So that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, Our presence automatically liberates others.”
-Nelson Mandela,
1994 Inaugural speech

1. I can almost see the High Places
Shining bright in the sky
But suddenly, the path takes a turn
And I can’t understand why
I call for the Shepherd, He comes to me
And holds me as I cry
When I ask Him His reason, He gives me a smile
And ever so gently replies…

Ch. Do you love me enough to follow me?
To turn away from your heart’s desire?
Do you trust me to make it right in the end
Even when your heart’s on fire?
Though the desert seems long and the goal seems so far
I promise you I will be there
Though your tears fall and heart breaks, look into my eyes
And see my purpose everywhere

I will never leave you alone
Cause you are my very own…

2. So as I walk through the desert
I’m praying it comes to an end
Then I open my eyes, see what I’m becoming
Getting strong and less likely to bend
Something about me seems better
My desire has grown deeper still
My resolve in now stringer, my purpose more real
As I find grace to trust in His will

Ch 2. Lord I love you enough to follow You
Even to turn from my heart’s desire
I know You will make it right in the end
Cause You’ve set my heart on fire
Yes, the desert is long and the goal feels so far
I will keep on because You are there
I am better because of the journey I’m on
Your purpose is everywhere!

I never feel alone
I know I’m Your very own…


Copyright 2010 Hannah McMichael

*Inspired by Hannah Hurnard's "Hinds' Feet on High Places"*

One night I prayed
“God, can I have a hug when I get there?”
Daring to believe that
The Lord of Heaven
Might bend to hold me in His arms.
Then my parents hugged me goodnight
I cuddled my sister when she was sad
I looked and saw the shining eyes
Of my friends as they wrapped
Their arms around me.
And God said, “You can have one right now.”


(c) Copyright Hannah McMichael
June 28, 2010

Vs1: Tears pour and hearts fall
The wound is running deep
The question unanswered
Am I more than what I see?
No cause is a lost hope
Even when the fire’s dying
There’s more to life and more to love
More than just surviving

Ch: I believe in redemption
I believe in the touch of God’s grace
I believe in forgiveness
I believe in a smile on God’s face
I believe in renewal
I believe in every day’s dawn
I believe in a second chance
I believe in redemption

Vs2: When friends forsake me
When love turns out wrong
I look with weary eyes and see
I still can have a song
A new smile, a new dance
A new song just waiting
For me to stand and take His hand
With a bright and new beginning!

(Repeat chorus)

(c) Copyright 2010 by Hannah McMichael


*I am still working on the Bridge...so this is a work in progress. :D

Here's a few reviews for some magazines I've been reading lately! :D Check them out! Enjoy...

Eating Well (www.eatingwell.com)
Very good articles and recipes. A lot of ads, but on the whole, I’d say worth the price.

Vegetarian Times (www.vegetariantimes.com)
I wouldn’t buy this one again. Yes, some good recipes, but there is a very strong “animal rights” message throughout the whole magazine that I find disturbing and would rather not knowingly support.

Back Home Magazine (www.backhomemagazine.com)
I like this one. Tons of great information on farming, raising animals, “green living” (i.e., solar energy, etc.), with a seemingly good outlook and without the “in-your-face” animal rights message.

Organic Gardening (www.organicgardening.com)
Very good information, articles and recipes. Not too “green”, just good gardening/farming/animals stuff presented in a healthy, organic perspective.

NGJ (www.nogreaterjoy.org)
Though geared towards child training, marriage and family, this great magazine never fails to have something in it about herbs, gardening/farming or some other form of outdoor or nutritional information. Also, two of the Pearl family’s other ventures, The Bulk Herb store, and Shoshanna’s Herbs, are great places to buy herbs and herbal remedies from.

In progress.

"The Farming Game", also in progress.

Finished product.

Charlie and I sat down afterwards and figured out the approximate cost of our entire meal. We figured, including all our veggies, the meal cost about $9.72 to make. :D And that feeds 7 people, with leftovers.

So...inspired by my post yesterday, I decided to make pizza today! :D I used all millet flour, just to see how it worked. It make Beee-yoo-ti-full dough, but being that it has not gluten in it, it was slightly hard to roll out, because it doesn't hold together real well, and doesn't stretch like wheat dough. It was easier to work with that rice flour dough, but still a bit difficult.

Besides that, it tasted good! I still like the taste of the rice flour, but the millet has such a pretty color! It's more yellowy, almost like corn.

And alas, my siblings were starving and waiting with forks and knives when I pulled out the pizza, so I spared them a photo shoot. Next time... :P

Pizza Crust
2 cups water
1 ½ Tbsp. arrowroot
2 Tbsp. olive oil
5 cups flour (rice or millet)

Dissolve arrowroot in the water, and add the remaining ingredients. Mix until a dough ball is formed. If it is too dry, add a little more water; if too wet, add a little more flour.
If you use rice flour, the dough will not hold together for rolling like traditional pizza dough. So what I found that works is making a deep dish style by pressing the dough into an oiled 9x13 pan and piling the toppings on. :)
Millet flour holds together much better, though at the moment of typing this, I haven’t yet made an all-millet pizza.

Our special blood-type pizzas:

For A’s and B’s: mushrooms, onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil spread on the bottom, with Mozzarella cheese, cooked crumbled turkey, oregano, paprika, basil, parsley.

For AB’s and O’s: mushrooms, onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil spread on the bottom, tomato sauce, Mozzarella cheese, cooked crumbled turkey, oregano, paprika, basil, parsley.

We had a feast today.

We put pure olive oil in our deep fryer, sliced up various vegetables super thin: beets, parsnips, onions, butternut squash, kale, sweet potatoes, and white potatoes.

And we had veggie chips.

We tried to find veggie chips at the store. But they all---ALL---had something bad in them. Even the ones I thought were the best had maltodextrin in them. :(

So we made our own. They were delicious. :)

Sadly I don't have a picture. They were eaten too fast.

Here is a recipe I created for blueberry muffins this week! It was totally an experiment, and I was not sure if they'd be flat or not, but they worked great and are just perfect.



Blueberry Muffins

3 cups brown rice flour
1 cup oats
1 tsp. baking soda
1/3 cup honey
splash of vanilla
2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. arrowroot
dash of salt
1 cup frozen blueberries (I put in a bit more than a cup) :)
2 cups water
6 TBSP. olive oil

Mix it all together. I didn't use muffin papers, becaseu I didn't have any, so I just oiled the muffins tins and it worked. The thing is, you have to re-oil them with each batch or they stick slightly. Bake at 375* for about 15 minutes. They come out of the tins best if you let them cool first.
Good served warm. Better served refridgerated. :D

Hey there! Welcome to my kitchen! I'm really excited to be able to present you all with this glimpse into one of my most important daily activities...the creation and preparation of food. So come along, pull up a chair and stay for dinner!!

p.s. By the way...my name isn't really Bethie. It's Hannah Elizabeth. Bethie is a nickname given to me by one of my very dear friends. :)