We had so much fun celebrating Danielle's 30th birthday together! We did some shopping and ate lunch together. I bought Danielle a fun St. Patrick's Day headband.  Danika loved the headband and wanted to wear it too! 

She wanted to be just like her beautiful Momma!

Danika loves to shop! She found a teddy bear almost as big as herself to carry around!

And when she got tired, she found the perfect bench in the toy section!

It was such a fun day! Danielle and I were talking about her 30th birthday. Danielle said she feels old, and I said I feel old too! Where have the years gone?! But we are thankful for every year the Lord has blessed us with, and that is how we have to look at it :) 

We had a windstorm come through our area, and after it passed, Riley and I took a walk to check on our acreage to see if there were any downed trees.  Thankfully, there were none! That is amazing, considering how long we had the winds, and so many around us lost trees.

When we got home from our walk, I realized I had dropped a glove, so we had to retrace our steps, and finally found it just as I was about to give up! Right on the road, not long after I had stopped to put them in my pockets. I prayed as I walked, asking the Lord to lead me to the glove, because I had walked all over our property, and there was not enough snow to retrace my steps. Thankfully, the Lord answered my simple prayer! Not a big deal, but a small prayer. Answered! Thank you, Lord!

Springtime is making its entrance! Happy First Day of Spring!

I went ahead and started some seeds! I counted out on my calendar 12 weeks to our first frost date, and that is the first week of June, from March 18. So these seeds will have plenty of time to grow before planting time comes. We can't plant up here until the first week of June due to late frosts that we often get.

My Pampered Chef order has arrived! OOOH so exciting! I was able to get some new dishes!

I absolutely love these cream-colored dishes. They have gently curved edges with a beautiful glaze, and are just so pretty.

A recent meal prepared for some guests - I made chicken fajitas (using the seasoning recipe found in my cookbook). It was all so good.

I will share the recipe for the chicken fajitas below. I cooked these fajitas in the oven, such a simple and wonderful way to make them! I usually double the recipe below and keep the seasoning in a jar to use as needed.  FAJITA SEASONING MIX:  6 tsp chili powder 3 tsp paprika 1-1/2 tsp cumin 1-1/2 tsp garlic powder 1-1/2 tsp onion powder 3 tsp dried oregano 3 tsp salt 1 tsp cayenne pepper 3 tsp sugar (optional)  Mix all ingredients together and store in a glass jar. Use 1 pound of meat per 2 Tbsp seasoning.  Chicken Fajitas: Place 1 pound of thin chicken breasts (slice breasts in half if thick) into a bowl. Stir in 2 tbsp fajita seasoning and 1 Tbsp lime (or lemon) juice. Mix well, cover, and let marinate for several hours in the refrigerator. When ready to cook, heat the grill to 400 and grill chicken until done, about 10-15 minutes. Slice chicken into thin bite-sized pieces and serve with heated tortillas, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa.  Beef Fajitas: Place 1-2 pound skirt steak in a bowl with 2 Tbsp fajita seasoning and 1 Tbsp lime (or lemon) juice.  Mix well, cover, and refrigerate to marinate. When ready to cook, heat the grill to 400 and grill until done, 10-15 minutes. Slice steak and serve with heated tortillas, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa.

After my last post, where I lamented the lack of winter that we've had, I believe the Lord heard my prayers {smiles}. We have had several rounds of snow ever since I posted that! We needed it so badly! I know many are disheartened by its late arrival, but come August, we will be so very thankful for this badly needed snow that we've gotten! Riley and I are beside ourselves with joy! Unfortunately, it is too wet and sticky to ski in, and most of it melts by the end of the day - even so, early in the mornings, we get to walk and enjoy it! 

This year, Spring's arrival isn't nearly as anticipated as it usually is. I don't remember having a winter like this with such a scarcity of snow and cold. Now, I can hardly believe that the clocks have jumped forward, and Spring is making its appearance! We are still getting heavy frosts, but with no snow, early spring blooms will arrive soon! The skies have been amazing, my sweet kitty Ash joined me on an evening walk as the sun was setting. She and I both were so amazed at the skies! 

Oh, the sunsets the Lord has been painting the skies with lately! This was His Valentine to me this week! Isn't it special! Riley and I were walking one evening as the sky's colors began to shift into this grand display. Oh, the wonder in my heart, and the praise on my lips to the Lord for His sweet blessings that come to me just like this. 

Sharing The Things We've Learned...

In my last post, I mentioned that I wanted to share a post outlining all we have learned while attending Cardiac Rehab after Dan's heart attack, as well as our own research and what worked to allow him a full recovery and return to work with no restrictions! So here it is! Just warning you... this will be a rather long post! You might need a healthy snack and a favorite beverage! 

The last three months since Dan's heart attack have been filled with doctor's visits, travel to Cardiac Rehab, and doing all we can to get as healthy as possible, together.  All of this work was in anticipation of a required test (an echocardiogram) that would determine if Dan could go back to work. 

In my last post, I mentioned how excited I was that we were about to get some snow... now I know many of my readers don't care for snow at all, but you know how much I do LOVE the snow. Last week, the snow began to fall. It hasn't been a whole lot, we perhaps have about 8", but still, it has arrived!