Make Ahead Egg Muffin Sandwiches

Looking for an easy way to make breakfast ahead of time?  Look no longer!  These sandwiches are easy to make and heat up.  

Ingredients:

English muffins

Eggs

Sliced Cheese

Meat if desired

Salt and Pepper

Jumbo Muffin pans--normal cupcake pans do not work as they end up too small

Procedure

Toast muffins in the broiler.

Spray jumbo muffin pans with spray oil

Place one egg in each muffin holder and gently prick with a fork to allow the yolk to spread a little.

Salt and pepper eggs

Bake at 375 until eggs are set.

Place eggs on toasted english muffins and top with a slice of cheese.

Wrap with aluminum foil if reheating in the oven. (large quantities)

Wrap with plastic wrap if reheating individually in the microwave.
Place them back in the muffin bag they came in, label, and freeze.  

If reheating in the oven, I like to turn the oven on the lowest setting of about 170 degrees a while before I'm ready to serve.  Then, whenever I get around to it, they are ready.  If I get distracted, they just keep warm rather than burning:)

Tips for making large batches.

Start with toasting all the muffins and set aside in proper pairs.

Start your first batch of eggs baking.

While eggs are baking, tear off appropriate-sized aluminum foil sheets and place in a line on counter.

Go ahead and place english muffins in the center of each aluminum foil sheet.

Place cheese slices on muffins.

When eggs are finished, place on muffins and start the next batch.  If you have a couple of pans, you can easily make a large batch of these.  Wrap them in the foil, place them back in the muffin bag they came in, label them and relax for breakfast!

Living a Significant Life

I've been to a several funerals in the last few years, but one funeral gave me a lot to think about.  Generally, when I go to a funeral, grief is evident everywhere while treasured memories of the deceased are shared among family and friends.

At this funeral, however, the one feeling that I carried with me as I left the church was that it appeared that

almost no one was sorry or sad.  I saw very few tears and really, the whole occasion just seemed to be an effort at how quickly everyone could get done with the event and go home.

I knew the deceased, and I knew that he was not "bad" in the sense that everyone was left with bad or abusive memories.  Rather, although he was quite successful in many business areas of life, he had apparently not been a significant person in the lives of those around him.  While he had left an inheritance of money and possessions, he had apparently not left a lifetime of relationship memories.  Somehow he had failed to be significant in the lives of those around him while still being successful in the business world.

He had long since retired so very few if any of his business associates attended his funeral.  Rather, it was his close family and friends, and of those who attended, it seemed to be apparent that his life had not centered around them.

I don't like to cause people grief, but I do want people to be sad at my funeral.  I want them to feel they have suffered a great loss.  I want them to be joyful because I have gone to heaven, but I want to be such a significant person in many people's lives that there is great sorrow when I'm gone.  I want to be a friend and a mother or a daughter or sister that is missed, because it is a tragedy--even a wasted life--if at the end of life, no one is sorry or there is no loss felt.   What is a life for if when it is done, no one cares if you are gone?

Being significant comes from everyday choices--choices to be involved in the lives of others rather than spend time on myself.  It comes from giving up what I want to do to be with others and do what they want to do.  It comes from spending less time, energy and money on things, and more on people.  It comes from the example of Jesus who gave up his whole life to invest in the lives of others and brought significance to the world through his life.  I pray that God will help me live my life so that many will feel they have lost someone very significant when I'm gone!

Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag

If you are looking for a fun recipe for a picnic or camp out or even a church event, try this homemade ice cream in a bag. 

Place ice cream mix in a sandwich sized ziploc bag.  Then place filled bag into a larger quart sized bag and surround with ice and3/4 Cup salt. Seal both bags securely and shake for about 5 minutes.  Your ice cream will solidify as you shake it.  Enjoy!

Ice Cream Mix

Combine and mix well

1 Cup Whole Milk

2-3 Tbls Evaporated milk

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 Cup sugar

Strawberries or other fruit

Serves one

For making large quantities, use this recipe.  Serves 80

4 Gallon Whole Milk

4 cans evaporated milk

1 1/4 Cup vanilla

16 Cups sugar

Fruit of your choice

Plenty of salt for the ice

Remember the Bad Days--they won't last forever

This past week, I was visited by a stomach virus, and as I lay in bed, I had a few thoughts that I decided  I would share especially with young mothers.  Now considering that these thoughts came to me during my fight with a stomach bug, one might think that they wouldn't be unusually profound, but hopefully they will bring

some encouragement to someone today.

Recently, I read Deuteronomy chapter 8 in my devotions, and a particular truth stood out to me.  Moses is giving advice and warnings to the people of Israel in chapters 6 through 8.  He is also reminding them of their great journey through the wilderness and all the great things that God did for them as well as all the difficult things that He brought them through.  He reminded them of the miracles that God performed for them in providing food and water and protection for them.  He also reminded them of the dangers they faced as well as the difficulties they encountered.  Then he encouraged them to never forget God as they continue their lives.  One might even say it was family story night as they recalled their lives together.

As I lay in bed in bed trying to sleep away the sickness, my husband came in and took the baby monitor so I couldn't hear the baby when she woke up, and my older children got the younger ones dressed and took them to the park.  I was able to recover fairly quickly as I had uninterrupted recovery time in my quiet room. As I lay there, I remembered that it wasn't always this way.

My mind went back to the long, often discouraging days of young motherhood.  If I were to look back and find my darkest days in life, many of them would be found in those early days of motherhood.   Although I have many wonderful and cherished memories of when my first children were young, I also remember the difficult days.  I remember days when I struggled for weeks and months on end with an condition that took years to get properly diagnosed.  During those days, I had little help.  I lived far from my mother.  Rick had a job that kept him away from home.  On those days when I really struggled with my health, the baby still needed cared for and naps were often just not a possibility.  I know from experience that little, energetic children don't slow down just because mom needs to!  They don't make their own meals when mom's having a rough day, and they still need drinks every three and a half minutes it seems...

Yes, I remember those days when I enjoyed that season of life and the little ones that God graciously gave me, but the actual working out of those days in my life were often difficult and dark days because I often was weary and not feeling well.

God encourages us to remember those days as well as the good times.  Why?  I think He wants us to thank Him for the grace and strength that He gave during those times, but He also wants us to remember those around us who are currently going through the same challenges.

This morning, I want to encourage those of my friends who struggle--perhaps with very little help or encouragement.  Things will get better.  Those little ones who needed a drink every three and a half minutes will lightly tap on your door with a cold drink.  The ones who couldn't fathom why you didn't want to go to the park will bless you with extra care as you recover.

This past Mother's Day, my children bought me a garden fountain which I thoroughly enjoy.  It is situated outside our bedroom door where I can hear its noise as I go to sleep at night.  It more than makes up for all the sleepless nights I endured, and all the naps I missed during those darker days.  It's not worth it because of the beauty of the fountain, but because of their love that it reminds me of every time I see it.

If you are having a rough day, be encouraged that dark days don't last forever.  In order to appreciate the light at the end of the dark tunnel, one has to be in the dark for a while.  If you can always see a little ray of light while you are going through a dark tunnel, you can't appreciate  the light.  But if you walk in the dark for days and days trusting that someday the light will reappear, you know the joy of seeing just that one tiny spot of light.  Hopefully this little post today will be a tiny ray of light for your day!