A Wonderful Weekend!

Oh what a wonderful weekend we had! It all started Friday afternoon, when the Franco's came over for a visit, and then carried through until Sunday! It was a wonderful time with most everyone working around the house!

"The newest member of the animal family"
To begin with, Sayre bought this little guy from Happy Cow! Isn't he cute? He is furry and has a pink nose with a white spot on top which makes it look like his mouth is even further up on his head than it really is!

"Look at his size in relation to Moo Cow"
Believe it or not, this little guy is only several weeks old. Sayre bottle feeds him twice a day and in between times he has access to grain. He and Moo Cow will moo across the field to each other which is so neat to hear!

"Ohhhh, it's another playmate Buck!"
Lila and Buck are doing really well with it. The just want to romp and play with it and I'm sure they would somehow get it into their dog house if they were allowed to do so!

Now, Sayre needs a name for his calf. Does anyone have a suggestion?

"Morning Solitude"
Moo Cow really, really, really likes the calf. When not grazing she can be found over by the little guys' pen keeping him company. She getting also seems to be getting bigger each and every day and Tristan can't wait to move her over to Bull Run!

"Preparing for winter"
On Saturday the garden was pulled up and everything plowed under. After the dirt was all turned over Daddy ran the disc through it and the dirt is nice and dark. There is one lone tomato plant in the middle of the garden that was saved as it is still bearing lots of fruit. Watching Daddy and Collin avoid that was amusing!

"Thing One and Thing Two"
These two acted as if they were on a long vacation Saturday morning! Between randomly chasing each other, pulling monster sticks around the place, chasing soccer balls, and in general acting goofy... I've never seen such weird dogs in my whole life. Of course, we are the Castlebury's! :o) Odd things seem to grow here!

"The Birthday Boy"
Sunday was Sayre's thirteenth birthday and he was the happy recipient of ten Ballantyne books! These might keep him busy for three weeks as he reads non-stop these days.
Sayre is a goofy guy who keeps us all laughing and on our toes as to what he might do next. He has developed a real interest in wildlife and is very gentle with animals.
He's a joy to have around!

"Oh so that's why you wouldn't let me buy this yesterday!"
You should have seen his eyes when he saw this animal trap!

"The Men-Folk"
Left to Right: Daddy, Trevor, Sayre, Tristan, Collin, and Sawyer.

What a wonderful weekend with fall temperatures, colors, and delights! I hope yours' was just as delightful!

A Recipe and A Birthday!

"Chocolate Eclairs"... that seemed to be all I heard about for the first part of last week. I heard about it through a blog, I heard about how good they were from one of my piano student's family, and I heard about these goodies being made (by ten and twelve year old boys) from a mother! I had chocolate eclairs on my mind until Wednesday; it was a rainy day perfect for making something sweet. Since I was making rolls anyway that afternoon I found that I could easily prepare both the rolls and the eclairs at the same time (such as while letting the roll dough sit I could quickly mix up the eclair pastry and get it in the oven). The recipe was more than simple... it was just way to easy for something that tastes oh so good!!

Let me give you the recipe and let you decide for yourself!

"Yummy Sweetness"

Place in a Suace pan:
1 stick of butter
1 cup water
1/4 tsp. salt
Bring to a boil and add in:
1 cup flour
Stir vigorously until a ball is formed.
Remove from heat and cool slightly.
Beat in 4 eggs, one at a time until silky smooth.

Using a small ice cream scoop, place batter, with 2 inches between each "batter blop" on a greased baking sheet.
Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes and the at 325 degrees for 10 minutes more. Check for doneness- should be lightly golden all over.
Remove from oven and cool- Then poke a hole into the hollow center with a butter knife of the end of a wooden spoon.

Fill cooled puff pastries with a mixture of:
1 large pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 cup milk
1 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese
Beat this until fluffy and then fold in:
3 cups cool whip topping.
Pipe this filling into the puffs.

Drizzle with thick chocolate syrup before serving. Keep filled eclair puffs chilled. Make about 20-28 puffs.

"Puffs waiting to be filled"
You will want to be sure to take the baked puffs off the baking sheet to cool. I left mine on the sheet for about ten minutes and many of them "stuck".
I will be making these again later this week AND I'm putting this recipe in my recipe book! It's definitely a keeper! I'm sure these are better than the ones you can buy at the store!

In addition to the excitement that the eclairs caused we also celebrated a birthday Friday!

Thelma hit the "ripe 'ol age" of twenty last Wednesday and Momma wanted to celebrate with her. It was so much fun to see Momma plotting what to get her, agonizing over what the Birthday dinner was going to be (the menu changed a time or two and in the end I just asked Trevor what he wanted to eat ,which settled the agonizing), and discussing all the little loose ends that still needed tying up.

"I gaw you Fuuuy socks Felma!"
The highlight for most of us was watching Thelma open Sawyers gift! He had bought "furry socks" with much excitement and we had to be on guard for a whole week lest he spill the beans! He wrapped them, with help from Momma of course, in some soft pink flannel and slept with them on Friday afternoon! It was so sweet to watch.

"The Festivities Continue"
Cake and Ice Cream came next along with coffee to keep us warm after the ice cream had lowered the temperature of our blood! We had a splendid time together!

My Daddy

Today is a special day for my Daddy. It's his birthday!!! Happy Birthday!!!
I consider myself very blessed to have him for my Daddy.....

There are several qualities that I really love about my Daddy. 1) He is willing to uphold what the Lord says and not what man dictates. 2)When Daddy makes a decision you know it's the right one. He mulls things over and thinks them out before making a decision on anything! 3) He works hard, and at times long hours, to provide for his family. 4) He's a logical thinker and can point out different things that you hadn't even thought of. 5)He enjoys working and being with his family!
Of course, there are many other things that I love about him but these are the most loved.

Mommas been causing all kinds delicious smells to waft through the house and I hear that there is homemade ice cream on the menu as well! I see a monstrous pile of meat thawing on the counter, potato salad in the refrigerator, and the ice tea (a necessity here!) is brewing all day long! I think Daddy is in for "the party of his life"!
Happy Birthday Daddy!

A Hope Chest Party

This past Saturday my Momma and I had the opportunity to attend Bethany's thirteenth birthday party which was held at their beautiful Victorian home in Belton!

Sadly, they don't live here permanently but it was wonderful to have them "close" to us for two weeks!! What a blessing!

Bethany's parents are raising her to be a future keeper at home and with this in mind, they planned a Hope Chest Party for her thirteenth birthday! The guests were encouraged to bring a gift that Bethany could tuck away in her Hope Chest along with a recipe to help start her own cookbook!

The party started with a wonderful luncheon which was prepared by Bethany's mother and her helpers.

Next came the games!!!
Here the girls are trying to crack an egg into a bowl or cup blind folded!

It was so neat to see the girls cheerfully donning their aprons for each game! They all looked so pretty and femine!

There was not a lack of little ones either!

These little girls were kept occupied for an hour and a half or more with this car! I got the biggest kick out of watching them!

Babies were everywhere!! Infants down to toddlers were welcomed and loved over!

The girl on the left is Haviland, Bethany's younger sister! She calls me "Ashley Casserole" and I in turn call her "Haviland Francostein"! It's an ongoing joke between our two families!

"Momma and Friend"
Momma and I had been asked months earlier about speaking at the party which we readily agreed to. Momma was asked to bring a challenge and I was asked to share my testimony with the group. I shall post the testimony down below.
All in All it was a beautiful party that brought honor and glory to God.

This is what I shared with the young ladies at Bethany's birthday party. If you haven't read the post on the party (posted above, then do so before reading this).

Bethany- Happy Thirteenth Birthday! You have so much ahead of you during these next few years and I cannot wait to see how the Lord will work in your life! Your parents have asked me to share my testimony with you today, something that I feel that I should do especially as it is so evident that God has really done a work in my heart since I turned thirteen.
As you know, the Franco and Castlebury families have known each other for quite some time! I think that I can remember when you were born and how ecstatic your Momma was to have a girl!! So, you know what I am today but how much do know about what I was?
I was born into a Christian family, one that attended church every Sunday and sent their children to Christian school like everyone else in the local church. When I entered seventh grade my parents felt the Lord leading them to home school my younger brothers and I, something that I am eternally grateful for! If they had not done this I don’t know that I would be standing here today. Soon after this change in schooling the Lord began to convict and show my parents of certain areas that needed to change in our family. As these changes began to take effect I became bitter, hateful, and rebellious. I didn’t want to change because I didn’t want to be different and I thought that my parents were just trying to fit me into a mold. I didn’t trust their leadership and I most certainly wasn’t going to trust God. I was miserable and thought that my parents just needed to leave me alone so that I could “be my own person”. I wanted independence from my family and God; I wanted to be my own person. I wanted to have my own job, do my own thing, and not be accountable to anyone; but God wouldn’t allow me to have my own way.
I went on in this rebellious state for several years causing not only myself to be miserable and unhappy, but also my whole family. There were arguments, hateful words said by me, and a rebellious attitude that seemed to grow with each passing day. Finally, the Lord brought something into my life that caused me to deal with my heart which also meant dealing with my doubts about Salvation. My Mom took me to John 3:18 which says “He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” and also to John 10:27-29 which says ”My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life: and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them me is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” It was then that I realized that Salvation happens when you trust Him as your Savior and that once you are saved nothing can take it away! You are God’s forever! As my Mom said “It was as if the light finally came on!” in my heart and from that moment things began to change! I can’t tell you what changed first as I didn’t even know change was taking place, but I know that I began reading my Bible and cultivating a relationship with the Lord! I found that I wanted to know more about God and began to wonder what He was going to do with my life.
There have been many ups and downs in the past eight years since the Lord got a hold of my heart and the recurring theme that I see and hear from my parents is that God has worked a miracle in me! There is no other explanation! See, during my rebellious years I thought that marriage and children were optional and that women had a right to do whatever the men were doing. But now, eight years after the Lord got a hold of my heart, my way of thinking has completely changed! I now believe that a woman’s greatest calling is to be a keeper at home and raising up a future generation that brings honor and glory to God’s name! There is such fulfillment in this!
As I got closer to graduating from High School I began to wonder “what would the Lord have me to do? Where should I go to college? Does He want me to go to college? What should I major in?” These were all questions that I faced every day. I finally told the Lord that “if You want me to go to college I will: If You want me to stay home, I will” and I had such peace after telling Him that. As I talked with my parents and listened to their concerns, it became apparent to me that the Lord wanted me to be at home, learning from my Mother how to be a keeper at home. See, I didn’t want a career; I felt that my place was going to be as a keeper in my own home and that wasn’t going to be something that I would learn or be encouraged to do at a college. Where else can you learn and have hands on experience about taking care of a home and children than amongst your own family? During what would have been my freshman year of college my Grandfather had a stroke and my Mom spent allot of time in Michigan helping her Mother as they made the trek back and forth to the nursing home. While she was gone I ran the house. I cooked, cleaned, did laundry, ironed, had to keep the boys on track with school, and took on the responsibilities that my Mom had every day. During the next several years this was repeated several weeks out of each year and it was a real learning experience for me! I would not have traded it for anything!
Bethany, as you begin your thirteenth year I would encourage you in several areas. I would encourage you to keep a submissive heart before the Lord and your parents. You have some of the godliest parents that I know and the Lord may guide and direct them down paths that may seems lonely but remember that the Lord is leading them. I have been, and am going down, the path less trodden and it is lonely but I take comfort in knowing that this is where God would have me to go.
I would also encourage you to make the most of these next few years to learn more about home keeping. I personally believe that God created women to be keepers at home and I believe that this is what your parents believe as well. Learn from your Mother- learn how to make your house cozy and welcoming to your future husband, learn how to take care of a home, learn how to cook those really good but really “hard sounding” meals! Of course I’m sure you already know all this but I must encourage you on!!
Bethany, do not waste the next few years as I did. Use them to read good wholesome books that make you think and learn all that you can from your mother and father. These years will be gone in a flash- use them wisely and for God’s glory!

Happy Birthday Trevor!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Trevooooooor........ Happy Birthday to you!!

Today is the day that Trevor turns twenty-two! Has it really been that long since we were kids? Where does the time go?

I'm thankful that the two of us have always been close. I can remember all of the childhood games and escapades that we used to have together. Trevor was the one who had an extremely vivid imagination and built water works for his GI Joe's out of cheese dip containers and straws!
He also figured out that we could swim in an old trash can! Don't worry, it was used for hauling brush not trash!! The can was full of leaks so he came up with the idea to plug the holes up with rags!! Life was great when he was around!
As we got older things changed, but we were still close. One thing that we started doing was to hold late night conferences in my room which have been as real challenge as well as an encouragement.

He is still Mr. Goofy and Mr. Imagination although the imagination has turned into designing things to build (such as bookcases). He keeps us all entertained with stories from work and makes us all laugh!! The sun seems to come back out when Trevor gets home from work!

What I like about Trevor is that he has a heart that's willing to be taught the things of the Lord and takes action on what the Lord has to say in His Word.
Trevor is a thinker and I've so enjoyed seeing him think through why he believes what he believes and ponder what the Lord would have him to do.
Trevor is a real inspiration to me.

Happy Birthday Little Brother! I love you!!

A Very Special Birthday!

Last Friday was my Birthday and it was by far the most special and meaningful Birthday that I've had yet. I'm not posting this because I want to "flaunt" the items that were given to me, but because I am truly thankful and tickled pink over what my family has done for me!! I honestly can't keep it in!

Friday morning dawned humid and rainy and totally put to rest any thoughts that I had about gardening; that was okay though, there were other things to do and projects to work on!
Momma let me know first thing that I was not allowed to do any house work, but I managed to wash some dishes and help out a little!! My dear Momma included Sawyer in the cake making process and he rotated between playing with the jeep and talking about making the cake! He likes to "helw" in the kitchen!

Sayre requested that I talk about the cake.... We have a recipe that has you save part of your batter to use as your frosting; the layers are raspberry jam and the combination of the frosting and the jam is perfect!! Not to sweet which is what I like!! It was delicious!!!

Momma received a package from dear, sweet Paula and we were thrilled to pieces to find several gifts included for me!!! It brightened our rainy day up immensely!!

Paula had made wall quilts for both Momma and myself. We are eagerly anticipating using them and are amazed at the amount of care and thoughtfulness that she put into them.

Mrs. Paula also made me this beautiful tote bag that I just cannot wait to use!!! I used it for Church yesterday and felt so feminine walking around with it on my shoulder!!
Thank you Mrs. Paula, you don't know what a blessing you are to us!

Last Tuesday I walked upstairs after giving piano lessons and found these roses and card laying on my bed!! My friend Adah had remembered my birthday and this was her gift! These were extra special as I have only received flowers once before!! They are beautiful and are still looking great a week later! Thank You Adah!

My first sewing machine arrived last week!! We found an add for it in the IWANA; it's fourteen years old and is totally mechanical which I'm going to have to get used to. It's in excellent condition for it's age and has allot of use left in it!!

Momma, Daddy, and the boys all contributed into my sewing notions gift! I'm using all of it as I type!

I love this print from Trivium Pursuit!! Johannah (Bluedorn)Stanford is a talented artist who has written/drawn several scripture picture books. We all sit and study her prints and feel so refreshed and invigorated after seeing them! You can see more of her art here.

I recieved many useful and needed things and I feel truly blessed to have such family and friends!
I'm off to garden!

The Birthday Boy!

Saturday was Sawyers' second Birthday! My, how the past two years have flown by! They've been terrific years and I've learned allot just by having him around!! Such as, consistency is KEY!

Here he is with the horse that he got! It will make noises if you pull or squeeze it's ear and he likes that. I don't think he really sees the need to ride on a stick with a horse head on it yet. At least, it doesn't appear to be enjoyable to him!

Momma hit the nail on the head when she gave him a "John Deere Tractor set"!! He plays with it all the time! Let's see... there's a tractor, a sprayer, several various kinds of trailers, and a four wheeler and they all connect together (except that the four wheeler goes in a trailer). He is enthralled with it!!

"Hammie" is growing up so fast. He's looking more and more like a little boy and is interested in big boy things like hammers (which, interestingly enough, he calls Hammys'). Happy Birthday little guy! I'm so glad you're part of our family!

Birthday Boy!

Momma and the Birthday Boy !

My younger brother Sayre turned twelve years old last Friday!

"I know it's a gun, but what kind?????!!!!"

His Birthday will be one that he will remember with fondness, as Daddy gave him his first gun!!! Sayre had picked it out quite a while ago and Daddy found it when he and the older boys attended a "Gun and Knife Show" about a month ago. The gun is a semi automatic Ruger 10/22 rifle and Sayre has been honing his "shootin" skills ever since he got it!!

He's Thrilled!

Look at his smile!! He was so excited!

Unfortunately, some of us had a "goofy" streak running through us while Sayre was busy with his gun, and the camera operator had fun!

"It's really mine!"

"Don't Ask me what they're doing........"

I just love Tristan's' expression in this picture!!

Blowing out the candles

Sayre didn't request a birthday cake, instead he wanted a chocolate torte which requires refrigeration. Not a problem!! It was interesting with the candles burning as the top layer is whipped cream and very soft!

More goofiness....

Happy Birthday Sayre!!!