Forgiving and Remembering...

Forgiveness/Remembering…

Our pastor did a word study for us on Wednesday night on the word “remember”. While he was speaking, my mind was drifting a little to the idea that if we are to forgive and forget as best we can the ones who have wronged us in our life, there is another side of that coin.

According to Philippians 4:8 we are to think on things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report and so if we are to think on these things we can begin to remember the good.

We are to remember God:

Psalm 143:5 “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.”

Pastor took this verse and looked at the word “muse” – to consider something thoughtfully – syn. “chew over, contemplate, excogitate, meditate, mull, mull over, ponder, reflect, ruminate, speculate, think over” (I especially like “ruminate” because being from farm country I can relate to that word, like a cow out in the field chewing and rechewing its food).

So as I look at the world around me, the trees, the beauty in nature, or even the diversity and beauty in other people and the works of the hand of man controlled by the creativity God gives, I see the creator in all these things and I can “muse” on the works of God.

I was thinking as pastor read this verse… “I remember the days of old”… even though there are things we need to forgive and put behind us, there are many other things to remember.

My life was pretty spectacular growing up with many fond memories, yet there were those things that I need to forgive and put aside. If I spend my time thinking of the unpleasant things it make me spiral into grey thoughts and can even leads me to depression. I am admonished in God’s Word to think of things that will uplift and encourage.

Remember. Remember God. Remember the works of God.

I Chronicles 16:12 was another of the verses Pastor gave us:

“Remember his marvelous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;”

Again, we are admonished to remember His wonders, His judgments which are “true and righteous altogether” Psalm 19:9

I know this sounds like a rambling conversation rather than a “study” and I guess I’m just putting my thoughts to words, so hope you can get something out of this.

Of the 210 times that this word is used in our King James Bibles, many of the uses of this word are in reference to God remembering:

Genesis 8:1 “…God remembered Noah…” ; Genesis 9:16 “… remember the everlasting covenant…”; Genesis 19:29 “…God remembered Abraham…”; Genesis 30:22 “…God remembered Rachel…”; Exodus 2:24 “…God remembered His covenant…” etc…

The word is used 38 +/- times in the New Testament –

Most of the uses of the word in the New Testament have to do with “remembering” what Jesus had said. (see Acts 20:35, Luke 24:6).

I want to never forget what God has done in my life. I don’t want to forget how lost I was and how He came and lifted me out of the miry clay…



“Deeper and Deeper” - Oswald Jeffrey Smith

Into the heart of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Seeking to know the reason
Why He should love me so,
Why He should stoop to lift me
Up from the miry clay,
Saving my soul, making me whole,
Though I had wandered away.

Into the will of Jesus,
Deeper and deeper I go,
Praying for grace to follow,
Seeking His way to know;
Bowing in full surrender
Low at His blessèd feet,
Bidding Him take, break me and make,
Till I am molded, complete.
Into the cross of Jesus

Deeper and deeper I go,
Following through the garden,
Facing the dreaded foe;
Drinking the cup of sorrow,
Sobbing with broken heart,
“O Savior, help! Dear Savior, help!
Grace for my weakness impart.”

Into the joy of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Rising, with soul enraptured,
Far from the world below.
Joy in the place of sorrow,
Peace in the midst of pain,
Jesus will give, Jesus will give;
He will uphold and sustain.

Into the love of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Praising the One Who brought me
Out of my sin and woe;
And through eternal ages
Gratefully I shall sing,
“O how He loved! O how He loved!
Jesus, my Lord and my King!”

family pictures



Our handsome grandsons





and beautiful daughters

 ...got together just before Thanksgiving for a little family time in MD.  I had to work, so couldn't go, but wish I could have been there.  They visited the Baltimore Aquarium...



"sssshhhh" - interpretation:  "fish"





I don't know what they were looking at, but must have been interesting.

 We'll all be together for Christmas, Lord willing, and some more family fun.

Christmas craftiness...

Newest "Bee Green Bag" made from an old felted wool sweater I picked up at the thrift store and a few embelishments.  This is a one-of-a-kind.  fully lined with pocket.  So much fun to make!

Yoyo flowers and crewel stems and leaves.

old-fashioned embroidered dish towels



worked better without the flash... this one is my favorite

 I've had some fun with my sewing this year.  I still have a few projects in the works and will post those when I get them done.  I like to take pictures of these so I can remember what I did for future projects.

Hope you are able to take some creative time out.

Hodge Podge Wednesday

1. What lesson has failure taught you?

Probably the greatest thing failure teaches me is patience with others who don't get it right.  I know that God uses failure in my life to make me even more dependant on Him also, but it makes me more understanding and tolerant of others.

2. What decision are you glad you made?

Of course the most important decision I have ever made was when I accepted Jesus as my Savior from sin. 

Most other major decisions I've made over the years are ones I just fell into, but I am happy with many of them, such as the decision to go back to school and get my degree in education, the decision to marry again after Don died, the decision to purchase a piece of property on the side of a hill with LOADS of rocks.  Of course we pray about the decisions we make, but it does take a step of faith into the unknown and trust that God will lead... and He always has.  Every major decision has come with butterflies in the stomach, but if it has been prayed through those will go away.

3. I've been a little bit surprised to see fully lit and decorated Christmas trees popping up for the past several weeks in friend's Instagram feeds. So tell the truth-is your tree up and decorated, and if so when did that happen? If not, when will you be decking the halls?

We don't have an indoor tree, not because we don't want one, but because we have no room.  As you can see in the picture at the top of my blog, we have a tiny tree that we could put up, but no room for it... really.  Camper living means every nook and crannie is filled with things you need.  If it is not needed it goes.  I will have an outdoor tree this year since we have the electricity hooked up outside but not till after Thanksgiving.

4. Solitaire-Poker-Rummy-Hearts-Go Fish-Old Maid...which game of cards would you most like to join?

We love playing games.  On holidays our family sits around and plays games one after the other... lots of fun and relaxing.  Our favorite is the Monopoly card game, the older one, not the newer version.  We also like a game we play with Rook cards called "Scum" and my daughters and I like "Dutch Blitz" and a card/board game called "Sequence".

5. This question comes to you courtesy of a Facebook friend, who once upon a time had a blog...When you're feeling stressed do you snack a lot or are you more the 'can't eat' type?

Real stress makes me sick to my stomach, but mild stress such running around trying to get stuff done, makes me eat the wrong kinds of foods.  I eat fast foods that are high in fat and sugar and those are things I really should keep away from.  If I have plenty of time I like to prepare and eat good foods like fresh veggies and grilled meats with all the fat trimmed off etc.

6. Have you ever reviewed a product or service on line? Was your review favorable or less than favorable?

I haven't done this.

7. What was the best conversation you had yesterday?

The last couple of days have been quiet at our house since Mr. D is preparing a message for Prayer Meeting at church.  He works outside during daylight hours and then at night comes in to study.  He has been studying a lot which means I either go to the house and work on sewing projects or sit on the little couch and hand stitch or read.  We did have quite a discussion at work yesterday about the health insurance changes that are happening.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I'm currently embroidering a tea towel with Bluettes which were my mother's favorite.  I'm excited to see how they will come out.

Have a happy Wednesday.  Join up with HodgePodge Wednesday at http://www.fromthissideofthepond.com/

 

MORE ON "FORGIVENESS"

Psalm 103:3

Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

When we repent, God is willing to forgive and cleanse. This is a finished work, it’s not a thing we should pick up and examine over and over (I John 1:9).

God does the forgiving of sin. He buries our sins it in the deepest ocean, sends them as far as the east is from the west.

Psalm 103:12
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.


Can we forgive ourselves? I’ve thought about this a while and I’m not sure that is a Biblical concept. We need to know God’s forgiveness.

Just as he has forgiven us, we can forgive others their trespasses against us.

Matthew 6:12
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Matthew 6:14
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

What if someone asks for forgiveness and we are unwilling to forgive. This is sin and will disrupt our relationship with others and with God.

Luke 6:37
Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:


What if you need to forgive someone who is no longer alive, or is not able to communicate with you for one reason or another. They may not be able or willing to ask for forgiveness. We can forgive them anyway and this will have an effect in our life. Did the Roman guards ask for forgiveness at the foot of the cross? Look at some Bible examples of forgiveness: Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25,27,32,33)

Joseph forgiveness of his brothers (Genesis 37-50)

David and Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 9)

The Prodigal Son (Luke 15)

Some of these asked for forgiveness, others did not, that wasn’t a limiting factor of forgiveness.

What about the woman caught in adultery (John 8) precious words of Jesus…

John 8: 10,11
When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more

God forgave us while we were yet sinners. (Romans 5:8)

We could write our own story. What about you when…






As far as “forgiving ourselves”, we should try to remember that God is the one we need to seek forgiveness from if we have sinned against Him. This could be in our attitude. Like I tell my Sunday School class: “Sin is anything we do, say, or think that displeases God”. We need to repent of those things and leave them with the Lord. If we are able to seek forgiveness from someone we have wronged, I think it is good for them and ourselves to go to them and ask for forgiveness and let them know we are sorry. If they are unwilling to forgive, we have done the right thing and before God we are forgiven. Satan would like to make us think we are still condemned, but what does God say about that?

We are no longer condemned…

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Is there anything too hard for God to forgive?

1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from ALL UNRIGHTEOUSNESS.

When the Bible says “all”, that means all. Reflect again on the story of Corrie Ten Boom who came face-to-face with the SS guard who had murdered so many. Had God truly forgiven him? What about David in the Bible? Did God forgive him when he asked for forgiveness? (Psalm 51)

Acts 13:22
… he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave their testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will.

I’d say in conclusion here, though I’m sure I will learn many more things on this topic as time goes on, it is easy to see that the world has an entirely different view of what forgiveness means. I’ve looked around the internet and read excerpts from books and magazine articles and the conclusion I make is Forgiveness is of God. Our ability to forgive and forgiveness of our sins… God is the author.

A Trip to the Great North Woods

On Saturday a friend and I took a trip to Northern New Hampshire.  When my brother and I were much younger we took a fishing trip to some places around Berlin, NH.  There were lots of logging roads due to the Paper Company pulling out pulp wood.  The whole countryside is covered with spruce and pulp paper was big business at that time.  Many of those mills have closed now or gone to recycling.  We went on Saturday even further north to the Third Connecticut Lake. 





falls on Beaver Brook

 

Ice forming on small branches at Third Connecticut Lake

 


My friend taking pictures at Scott's Bog.

 

Scott's Bog

 




Second Connecticut Lake

Yup, that's the first snows of this winter.
Later this night we received 4 inches.



We had a wonderful trip enjoying the beauty of God's creation.  Many years ago this area was logging territory.  See the history of Pittsburg, NH here http://www.greatnorthwoods.org/pittsburg/logging/



HodgePodge Wednesday (a day early)



Click above for Hodge Podge Home Page and join the fun.



Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 149

1. My sister is celebrating a birthday today. Happy Birthday little sis! What's one way you're like your siblings? If you don't have siblings how are you like your lifelong best friend or cousin?

In many ways I am very different from my brother, but one thing is the same, that we both love and serve a great God.

2. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of yourself at age eighteen?

Hmmm rebellious and headstrong… maybe they are the same thing, not really sure, but that’s what I think I was like. I was always busy doing something or going somewhere and planning for college at that time.

3. Sculptor-actor-painter-dancer...if you could excel in one of these arts, which would you choose and why?

I would love to be a good painter. My daughter is a lovely painter/artist.  She has the "artist's eye".  I especially like painting, but never was very good at it.

4. What's a scent that takes you back in time, and where does it take you?

Some time ago I bought some Herbal Essence Shampoo and when I used it I was taken back in time. I did use this shampoo exclusively all through high school.



5. November is for Peanut Butter Lovers (National Peanut Butter Lovers Month). Are you a lover or a hater?

I just ate 3 spoonsful of peanut butter. YUM!

What's your favorite dish/recipe that calls for peanut butter?

Chocolate/peanut butter no-bake cookies and/or peanut butter fudge - Christmas time only!!!

6. What do people thank you personally for most often?

For listening and my husband thanks me every time I cook a meal which I do most every day. Glad he can live through my cooking.



7. What event this year are you most thankful for?

I am thankful that Brandon was able to come for the summer and stay with us. He’s getting older now and I’m not sure how many more years he’ll want to come to Grandpa and Grandma’s house for the summer.  I am thankful that my 'lil Peanut and his mom live so close and I get to see them most every day.  I'm thankful for a great Sweetie who loves me no matter what and is patient with me even when I am crabby.  I am thankful for a good harvest and that it is almost all put up (dug beets but they are not put up yet). Thankful for my church family and for God most of all who forgave a rebellious, willful me.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

FORGIVENESS

A friend and I are embarking on a study of "Forgiveness.

It's true, we've all been offended or betrayed at one time or another in our lives. Sometimes this causes intense discomfort and may seem to be overwhelming. These hurts to the heart if left to fester can cause bitterness to spring up. Some people have no idea how to rid themselves of those feeling. It may lead to hate towards the ones who have offended us or unreasonable fear of being wounded again. They shy away from relationships with people because they are afraid of being hurt. Forgiveness is very important to the Christian especially because we have such a great example in the Lord Jesus. We have been forgiven much and because we have been forgiven much we should in turn forgive those who have wronged us.

Ephesians 4:32

And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Sometimes we think of forgiveness as something we are doing for the offender. We actually are allowing God to work a good work in us when we forgive. He brings healing to our heart and life. We are agreeing with God, that He is the only one who is able to judge another.

Romans 12:19

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

So we aren’t letting the offender “off the hook” so to speak, but we are allowing God to work in that persons’ life, and our own. Bitterness comes from playing the offence over and over in our mind. Remembering over and over the insults, hurt, rejection, injustices and pain that others have caused us. It causes us to be weak and fearful. Bitterness can actually cause us to be physically sick.

Hebrews 12:12-15

Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

Forgiveness is not a forgetting or promising to forget.  Forgiveness is not promising to believe that the other person was not guilty or responsible for what they did. It is not praising or rewarding the other person or approving of what was done. Forgiveness is not permission to repeat the offense. Forgiveness is our decision to no longer hate the offender; to realize that God will make things right. He has promised healing to our mind. He will work in the heart of the offender in ways we cannot.

2 Timothy 1:7

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Forgiveness is between you and God. Choose a time when you are ready. Pray and tell God that you are choosing to forgive, that you want Him to heal your heart and give you the sound mind He has promised. When we pray, agreeing with God that is a powerful thing. He will hear us. He is ready to heal us and give us peace. Just as with salvation it is not something we can DO, we are trusting GOD TO DO the work in our heart. We make the choice, but He does the work.

Galatians 2:16

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Titus 3:5

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us

…to be continued…

A Day Off

Last Friday I took a day off work.  Not just for a little time off, but because I had to go to the dentist in Boston and get my last 2 teeth out.  I'm getting prepared for permanent dentures and needed to get that taken care of.  We woke up about 3:30 am in order to make it to a 8:30 am appointment.  Got there just in time.  Mr D. had an appointment too.  We were all done by 11 am and though I was experiencing some discomfort I decided that we ought to at least enjoy the rest of the day.  We stopped at Market Basket for some lunch stuff (soup for me), and drove to North Hampton State Park Beach and had some lunch and walked along the beach.  It was a cold yet clear and sunny day.  The seagulls at first were a bit interested, but not aggressive and finally fluffed their feathers and hunkered down to keep warm.  I had a little swelling in my face, but took some pictures anyway.

Beautiful day to enjoy with my sweetie.  Look forward to many more.

Grandma's 'Lil Peanut

MORNING GLORIES

Here it is the middle of October and my Morning Glories are still blooming. I've had to cover them up a few times, and will for the rest of this week, but they are little rays of sunshine to me and I'll try to keep them going as long as I can.

The little bee was a gift from a friend who gives me bees.  My sweetie calls me his "Honeybee" so that's where it started.  I have a small collection of garden bees.

See the "heart rock"  Doug and I found that on the land.  I kept it and used it in the flower bed.

Just a little love and sunshine from me to you.

God is good!

Just in case any of you doubted we were gardening this year... I'm giving a glimpse of the garden.  It is a jungle since we've had 3 weeks of rain.  This means that the garden is wet in the morning before I go to work and in the evening it has been POURING. 

This makes for wonderful growth in the garden... the plants we want to grow and the weeds we don't want to grow. 

The blueberries are plumped and blushed.  The strawberries rotted on the vine for the most part.  We were able to pick during one short reprieve in the rain and picked about 4 pints.


highbush blueberries



We picked a few peas last night to cook up for dinner, yum!  Also pulled some radishes for Mr. D... I don't eat them much, but he loves them and will snack on them all day. 



peas in back, rhubarb (gone to seed) strawberries in foreground

  If the weather holds we should have a few days of sunshine and maybe I can get caught up with the weeding.  I know these pictures don't look it, but we weeded for about an hour last night.

winter squash gone wild



romano




red runner



We pray that God allows a good harvest this year.  Got a couple months to go.

Sorry the pictures are a little fuzzy... I was in a hurry to get to work on time... the time on my camera is not right either.  This was about 7:10 AM.  At least the date is right.

I was thinking today of the many failures we've had gardening.  It starts out just like this, but something happens, powdery mildew, bottom rot on tomatoes.  We had a hard time the first year making anything grow except where we had burned brush and there in the ashes the soil was good for winter squash.  I was also thinking today of friends who had 5 goats shot by an angry neighbor.  I know they worked hard raising them and all the money they used that went into feeding them grain through the winter and three of them were kids born this spring.  I was heartbroken.  It's hard enough farming, but then to have someone shoot your animals because they got off your property and onto theirs?  That is just mean and not very neighborly.

I must remember that these things happen to all of us.  Good or bad, right or wrong, God is still good and He is still God and He will always be in control.  We can labor hard for our provisions, but it is God who gives increase.

Matthew 5: 44-48

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

No matter what the circumstances may be, that last verse sums it up  "... be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Perfect here doesn't mean sinless, but it does mean we should strive to have the mind of God in all circumstances... whether we are dealing with grumpy neighbors or mold in the garden.   We know that God will provide what we need.

Praying that all our gardens produce well and that God will give grace to our friends who lost their goats.

God Bless! 

Lupine

The Lupine are blooming again on our hillside.  I wanted to take lots of pictures this year 'cause the dirt work being done here this summer may tear them up and they'll be gone.  I've tried for years to get these started in many places I've lived, but these all came about by sort of an accident.

I had a little box of wildflower seeds that I'd picked up from the Dollar Tree and they'd been around the house a couple years since I really didn't have the space to formally plant them.  One day I took the box outside to the top of the hill and just threw them to the breeze.  I really didn't have much expectation since I didn't think there were viable seeds anymore.  The next summer I had a variety of wildflowers blooming on the hillside.  Over the years the only ones to survive were the Lupine and Daisies.  They started small, but spread each year.  Mr. D likes to mow the hill and make it look better, so I let him do that once they have gone to seed.  I try to keep some of the weeds down a little during the early spring, but since he mows once a year, they really aren't bad.  There's a few dandelion that bloom early, colts foot and  paint brushes, but the Lupine are above them and beautiful. 

Thinking of the beauty of God's creation... it all points to the Creator, just as the Lupine spires point to the sky.  Although we love the beauty all around us and we do live in a beautiful part of the country,  it makes us love God all the more for giving us this to enjoy. 

We would not want to begin worshipping the beauty we see since all nature declares the glory of God.  Think of those who have done this.  Where does it lead?

Romans 1:22-27
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:  And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.

Help us Lord to give proper praise to you when we see your hand in nature. 

Memorial Day Snow

Woke up Sunday morning to this...

then Monday we planted the garden.  Monday was a beautiful day, sunny, breezy, and warm.  I got the laundry on the line and it dried in no time.  It was cool enough so working in the garden was wonderful and the breeze kept the bugs away. 

Just a little achy this morning and had lots of leg cramping last night but all-in-all and very successful work day.

Hope you had a good Memorial Day Weekend.

Spring is in the Air

Winter seems so long ago today, yet the last few night have been down below freezing.  Checked the garden this morning and all seems well.  I have stuff in the greenhouse still that needs planting but don't do the tender stuff till Memorial Day, our traditional planting day at the Millett Farm.

Just thought I'd share a few little pictures with you today.

Here in our tiny perennial garden that is waiting patiently for construction to end so it can spread it's wings we find a fully blooming pink Barrenwort...

I've had this little plant on my blog before but it's a little bigger now and hope it will thrive until it is time to transplant to a permanent home.

This is my tiny bleeding heart started last year. 

This is my "old fashioned" bleeding heart that I transplanted here a couple years ago.  It's small, but mighty and yearning to be planted in a place it can thrive.

These little guys are surrounded by ladies mantle, tansy, phlox, daffodils, and some other varied and sundry perennials longing to be free.  Maybe this year.

Don't you just love spring?

When I see the beauty that God has created I just can't help but praise Him... and I do praise Him for the beauty of winter... I just like to garden and you can't do lots of that in the winter :)

ONE YEAR AGO

It doesn't seem possible that Norman will be a year old on Friday.  He is such a wonderful baby.  I'm sure the spice will come out as he is fairly strong willed already, but at this point it is just a joy to have him here.

Here he was a year ago...



And here he was on Sunday in his first Easter "suit and tie"....

Love ya lil' Norman!  Happy birthday!

FRIKADELLEN



This photo is from http://www.gedankensprudler.de/?id=5874
but closely resembles my own recipe and serving ideas.
I like that she added caraway seeds to the brussel sprouts. Mmmm.



Share one of you families favorite dinners.

I thought my Aunt Jean had made up the name for these.  My mom used to call them "space burgers" 'cause the recipe used bread crumbs to take up space.  This was one of my favorites growing up.

German in origin, I'm guessing it is similar to German Meatballs (also known as frikadellen), but looks more like a hamburger patty.  I cook mine in a cast iron skillet and add stuff like mushrooms or diced onions even though there's chopped onions in the patty. 

Here's my recipe for Frikadellen

1 - 1 1/2 lb ground meat... beef, pork or lamb... whatever you have.
1 egg slightly beaten
1/4 finely chopped sweet onion or leek or green onion
1/4 c milk (can use a little yogurt/milk mixture)
1+ dry bread crumbs... don't need to be real crispy... I use old heels or crumbs from the bread board after my husband cuts his bread I save all the crumbs.
I add here spices... salt, pepper, paprika, parsley... anything you like to taste.

Mix egg, milk and breadcrumbs together then add all other ingredients and mix well.
Form into small patties 3" round and about 1" thick and fry all together in skillet. 
You can cook your mushrooms or onions right with the patties, or you can cook those afterwards in the pan drippings.  Keep patties warm in oven.  Don't overcook.  Use any pan drippings to make a light gravy to pour over patties and veggies.

We serve ours with whatever vegetables we have on hand, but my favorite side dish with this is something from the cabbage family and if you like potoatoes the gravy is nice over potatoes or mashed squash.  Mmmmm.  It's one of my most favorite dinners.

Please Vote

Joanna has entered a contest through Vermont State Parks by drawing a new logo for the water bottles they sell throughout the park system.  This is her drawing:

It's original.  I like it and if you do too would you please vote for her drawing at Vermont State Park Facebook  .  If you don't Facebook, maybe you have friends who do.  We're seriously lacking in "Likes".  Did you know you can actually PAY to have people "like" you on FB?  No kidding.  Well, we're not going there.  We're all appealing to those we know and who are hooked to internet or FB somehow to go to the above link, click on the picture and "Like" to make your vote count. 

Thank you all!

The Very Happy Snowman

Nice background, but here he is, minus his carrot nose and no arms.  He's still happy.