Being thankful in all things . . .

And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.
D&C 78:19

One thing that Todd and I do every day, and sometimes several times a day, is kneel together in prayer. We would never dream of going anywhere in the car without saying a little prayer first either. It is just the way we live our lives . . .

Our prayers are full of thanksgiving . . . expressions of gratitude for all the blessings we enjoy in our lives, and we have a great many of those. That's as prayers should be really . . . they shouldn't be long shopping lists of the things we want to have, or need . . . but conversations filled with appreciation for the good things in our lives.



Life was meant to be good, in all it's forms and places, even in our darkest hours. Heavenly Father wants all of his children to enjoy the good things in life and He is generous in all that He gives us . . . with all that we have, we must also have grateful hearts.

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am,therewith, to be content.
Philippians 4:11

Thank you is a beautiful word. Use it daily and often. Never let a kind turn go unappreciated, or a day pass without having expressed gratitude to others, and most especially to your Heavenly Father. Gratitude will feed your soul in a way that cannot be measured, and is, wonderfully and magically, it's own reward. It is good to have eyes and hearts that seek out the silver lining in all things.



I thought you might enjoy the latest picture of Mitzie here today. She had been having a snooze on the sofa, curled up against this pillow and I just thought it was so cute. Right now she is laying right behind me here on the sofa. For some reason she likes to get behind me and then when she has had enough of being ignored, she pushes against my back as if to say, enough already, I want some "me" time! We think she's very clever!



Here, too, is my latest painting, which is available as a card or a print, as always. I used scrap book papers for her dress and hair bow and also for the heart. I thought she turned out quite sweet, and is just perfect for Valentines day.

I did really well yesterday. I never ate anything at all that I shouldn't have eaten, and didn't snack between meals. Let's hope I can do the same today! Thank you for all your encouraging words and thoughts from yesterday! (Gratitude!)

Here's a delicious potato casserole that need not be filled with fat and calories, depending on what you choose to use when making it. I can't get the hashbrowns over here, so I just use boiled potatoes, chopped into bits. (Huge calorie saving there) I also use low fat soup, sour cream and half fat cheddar. It always tastes wonderful anyways. You can add seasoning if you like, but I never do, except for maybe some pepper. The cheese adds enough salt for my taste.





*Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

This is always one of the first dishes to empty when I take it to pot luck suppers. It's rich and creamy and stogged full of cheese. Not for the faint of heart.

1 bag of frozen hash browns (not the preshaped ones, the loose ones)
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 (10 1/4 ounce) tin of condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 cups of sour cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat your oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, reserving 1 cup of the shredded cheddar cheese. Spoon the mixture into a large shallow casserole dish, or baking pan. Sprinkle the last cup of shredded cheddar over the top.

Cover tightly with aluminum foil wrap and bake for one hour. Remove the foil, and bake for 30 minutes longer, or until the potatoes are soft, and the cheese is bubbly.

Note: You can use half fat or low fat ingredients if you want to cut down on the calories. I can't get the frozen hashbrowns over here, so I used cubed cooked potatoes, which works out wonderfully and is also a lot less calorific and fattening! (I use 1 large potato per person) I also sometimes like to crush some cornflakes and sprinkle them over top before baking, along with the cheese.



Over in The English Kitchen today, some Spiffy Jam Tarts!