Monthly Archives: May 2017

Tangled Stripes

iamthedivacztThis week’s diva challenge is to use stripes. I like this challenge because it is relatively easy. I decided to do about 3 horizontal stripes.

I checked the Square One: Purely Zentangle focus tangle and found it to be Paizel, which can be found on tanglepatterns.com. I like the basics of this tangle but not the Nekton background to it but I used it anyway. ;)

The pattern for the day over on Pattern-collections.com is 8’n wing. I wasn’t sure if I’d add this one to the tile or not but in the end, decided to go ahead and put one bit of it above the stripes.

The one pattern I just chose at random was Drogon by Lily Moon. I really liked this tangle and its simplicity when I used it last time, so I decided to play with it a bit more. It will take me quite some time before I do it justice in my shading though. :) It is fun to learn.

Here is my tile before shading.

DC#316, Drogon, Paizel, and 8'n Wing ~ Lifeofjoy.meI’ve really learned how to shade so as to cover up my jiggly, wiggly, line art. :D

Here it is shaded.

Finished DC#316 ~ Lifeofjoy.me

It is always at this point, when I see the tile enlarged on-screen, that I notice the areas where I should’ve blended the shading a bit more but by that time, I’m usually rushed and in a hurry to get it posted. So, as always, I see the imperfections once again. :D But it doesn’t matter because I enjoyed doing this one, even if I did rush it a little bit. ;)

Thanks once again for your kind comments. They encourage me to continue sharing. Sometimes I share it here and on facebook groups but then other times, I only share it here with you. Thanks for your encouragement.

Oh, Maggibee! This one was definitely more my taste; I hope it was for you as well. :)

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

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Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Low Carb Pizza Crust!

Hallelujah!!! Real hold-in-your-hand pizza! This is a great alternative for that carb-laden delight of the past.

Fathead pizza is all over the internet. I’m so glad I came late to the keto diet because people have figured out things like pizza crust, bagels, donuts, and muffins, not to mention cakes and cookies. Pizza is one of my favorite meals. My mother taught me to make pizza the way her mother taught her. It has been a staple in our family for a VERY long time.

I, like many others, have tried all kinds of pizza crusts: cauliflower, chicken, corn thins (during the Let’s Do Lunch diet), tapioca (good for paleo diets), and even egg based crusts. This one is a winner though. The others were an okay substitute for a while but eventually I would really crave that regular bread dough crust.

I had stayed away from this one while on other diets and even in the beginning of this way of eating because of the large amounts of cheese in the crust. You see, I didn’t know how it would work to have so much cheese IN the crust and then ON the crust too but I finally gave it a try and I love it!

Another reason I avoided this one was because every recipe I’d seen melted the cheese with the cream cheese in the microwave and I don’t like to use the microwave. Actually, for a long time I had my microwave put away. Then I learned that it works just as well on the stovetop.

Here’s how easy it is to make . . .

Put 1½ cups shredded mozzarella (I use part-skim because I was told it works better than full fat for this recipe) and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. As it begins to melt combine the two and stir occasionally, until it is all melted.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Then add 1/3 cup of almond flour, 1/3 cup oat fiber 500, 1 teaspoon garlic salt, and a teaspoon dried oregano.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.meGarlic Salt and Oregano ~ Lifeofjoy.me

When partially combined and cool enough that it won’t cook the egg on contact, add the egg.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Combine thoroughly.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Spread out thinly on parchment paper on a pizza pan or cookie sheet.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes, lightly browned.

Fathead Pizza ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Low Carb Pizza Crust!

Ingredients

  • 1½ cups shredded mozzarella (6 ounces)
  • 2 tablespoons cream cheese (1 ounce)
  • 1/3 cup almond flour
  • 1/3 cup oat fiber 500 (brand does make a difference)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 1 teaspoon oregano

Instructions

  1. Melt mozzarella and cream cheese over medium heat in a heavy saucepan.
  2. Thoroughly combine the two cheeses.
  3. When melted, add almond flour, oat fiber, and seasonings.
  4. Add egg and combine thoroughly.
  5. Flatten out onto parchment paper on a pizza pan or baking sheet.
  6. Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned.
https://lifeofjoy.me/low-carb-pizza-crust/

Expectations

Expectations ~ Lifeofjoy.meSometimes I have an expectation of how something will go or how something will be celebrated. I’ve learned this before but it bears repeating; unfortunately I’m repeating it AFTER Mother’s Day instead of before, when it would have been more helpful but maybe it will help you before your next celebration.

Unless you tell someone your expectations, you need to have low or even NO expectations about how a celebration will go. If I have hopes about how my celebration will be carried out, it is seldom realized. However if I have no ideas for how a day should be celebrated (like Mother’s Day, a birthday, an anniversary, and such) then no matter what we do, I’m good.

If doing particular things are important to me, then I need to tell the person that I desire it from, otherwise it is unfair to them and to myself. It sets myself up for sadness or even depression. It reminds me of what Lori Byerly of The Generous Wife said she had to learn: ask for what she needs.

Don’t drop hints. Don’t hope things will go a certain way without sharing your desires. Be realistic with your NEEDS.

I hope this will help you and will remind me in the future. :)

Until next time, God bless

Michele ºÜº

Birthday and Mother’s Day

My birthday was last week. :) It was nice and relaxing. Tiffany did my chores and cooked for me. She made delicious sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits for our breakfast,

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meand then a yummy steak and cheese bunless sub, which means we ate what would have been put on a Philly Steak and Cheese Sub, with mushrooms added.

Then for dinner she fixed my choice of Bacon Wrapped Chicken and roasted cauliflower.

Bacon-Wrapped Chicken ~ Lifeofjoy.meand then we had the delicious copycat candy bar cake. :)

I really like this picture; I wish it hadn’t been shaded oddly.Birthday Cake ~ Lifeofjoy.meCandy Bar Cake ~ Lifeofjoy.me

I got a lot of paper in my gift bag on my birthday morning.

Gifts ~ Lifeofjoy.meThe sheet music printout represented the digital sheet music package I requested from David Nevue. I just need to print it out now.  I’m looking forward to dusting off my music reading skills and playing some lovely music. Truth be told, I’m looking forward to improving this skill.

The studio classics piece of paper represents the DVD I wanted that has both Desk Set starring Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. It is a movie we enjoy but our video cartridge squeals now and is unwatchable. It also has I was a Male War Bride starring Cary Grant. We’ve seen this one before but have a hard time finding it to watch it again.

This DVD also has two other movies on it: Hollywood Cavalcade and How to Steal A Million. I’ve not seen these but it’s like they are free, so even if we don’t like them and never watch them again.

The lovely colorful paper represents some gray copic shading markers that wouldn’t arrive for a few days. This doesn’t bother me, it just means my birthday is extended. :)

Now the final piece of paper is the cutest one. I like chef dude items for my kitchen. I saw a few of them last fall but they were gone by the time Christmas came around. So I added it to my birthday list, in case anyone saw any.  Clearly he couldn’t find any, so he compiled this cute collage and taped the remaining money to it.

Chef Dudes ~ Lifeofjoy.meSo it will remain on my list for another gift giving occasion and I already spent the money on a new e-book by Eni Oken. :)

And on a final note, we made this very delicious Chocolate Peanut Butter Dirt Cake the other day! Oh My Gracious! It is soooo good! Okay, keep your expectations low so that you have a good experience because if you put them up too high, nothing will ever be that good. ;)

Cakes ~ Lifeofjoy.me


It’s always tough on my family when my birthday rolls around because Mother’s Day is not far behind. At least this year they have a little more space between the two, than other years. I’m looking forward to Mother’s Day.

Mother's Day ~ Lifeofjoy.meMother's Day ~ lifeofjoy.meSpeaking of which, I’m so very thankful for my mother. She held a young family together while daddy drove truck and was gone a lot when we were young. She ensured that we were in church nearly every service. She was always there for me no matter what I was going through, not only during my growing up years, but also after marriage and the birth of my children. She was a great example to me of love and devotion to God and family. Thanks Mom for all you do!

Mother's Day ~ Lifeofjoy.meMother's Day ~ Lifeofjoy.meI Love You ~ Lifeofjoy.meUntil next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

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Help for Fidgety Kids

Help for Fidgety Kids ~ Lifeofjoy.meI sure wish some of these ideas and products had been available and I had known about them when my children were young. My kids all seemed to need to tap, pat, swing, or make noise or some combination of all these most of the time. I cannot tell you the number of times I had to tell them to stop that. :D Even today, in their twenties, I occasionally tell one of them that I need him to stop making noise. LOL

Well, I read that some schools are banning these fidget spinners. I can understand why but yet it is sad for those that can really benefit from using them. At any rate, this article has some really good links to some homemade fidget toys.

Here’s a link to a recipe to make your own Calming Glitter Slime. It looks really interesting. I think I’d like to have some. ;)

Then there are these Lego Calming Stress Balls. I think I’d like one or more of these as well. Years ago, there was this one kind of small ball that when I squeezed it, it felt really good. It was a different sensation but I really liked it. I wonder if these are anything like it.

Here is a post with links to some homemade spinners, like the ones that are all the rage right now. If your child is old enough, you could look at this page with him or her, let him/her make their own fidget spinner.Help Fidgety Kids ~ Lifeofjoy.me

I got this fidget cube for Sean and Tiffany recently, very inexpensively. They really like them.

This is a good post on why children fidget. What I took away from it is that children fidget because they don’t get enough movement.

They even say that heavy chores are helpful for those who feel the need to fidget. Hey! This is a win-win. This post even links to a list of appropriate chores.

And this page has LOTS of fidgety ideas.

Don’t get overwhelmed. Just pick one or two to check out. Most of these links came from the page on the first link. There are many links on most of that site’s pages.

I hope these can be helpful to you.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

Balo Molygon

iamthedivacztThe diva challenge is to use Molygon. I’ve decided that I just do not like Molygon. Maybe one day I will but today is still not that day. I decided to combine it with the Square One: Purely Zentangle focus FB□1 ~ LifeofJoy.metangle of Balo. I did enjoy drawing Balo though, even though it has so many parts; it really flows.

I forgot to scan it before I started shading so, this is going to be really short today.

I started filling molygon one way and then decided I didn’t like it and so I switched to another way.

Balo Molygon ~ Lifeofjoy.meThanks in advance for you kind comments. They are all appreciated!

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.me

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuit

This is so simple, it is hardly a recipe but maybe a menu idea instead. The delicious combination of sausage, egg, and cheese on a light biscuit.

I have recently been making this wonderful breakfast sandwich using Belle’s Biscuits, which a recipe in Kristie Sullivan’s new Keto Cookbook and on her youtube channel here. It is an easy mixer recipe, that whips up rather quickly. I have also made this with Mug Bread, which I shared here.

So here is how to do this simple breakfast. Start with a biscuit or mug bread, sausage, an egg, and some cheese; I used some mild cheddar.

Sausage, Egg, cheese, biscuit ~ lifeofjoy.meCut the biscuit in half and toast it or just heat it up.

Cut Biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meForm a patty out of some bulk sausage and cook. Cook an egg. Tiffany doesn’t like egg whites, so we scramble up her egg for this sandwich.

Sausage and Egg ~ Lifeofjoy.meI like to add butter or mayo to my biscuit/sandwich.

Butter the Biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meFlip the sausage and egg and cook to desired doneness.

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.mePlace the egg on the bottom half of the biscuit. (I overcooked my egg today but it was still delicious.)

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meNext comes the sausage.

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meAnd now add some cheese.

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meAnd then put the top half of the biscuit or bread on top.

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meIt really doesn’t matter that there is some overhang of delicious food. I just eat those bites first or with just a little nibble of the bottom part of the ‘bread’.

Sausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meSausage egg and cheese biscuit ~ Lifeofjoy.meThis is definitely one of my favorite breakfasts! :)

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

House Cleaning

House Cleaning ~ Lifeofjoy.meWhen Michael and I first got married, we both worked. We actually rode to work together. Well, wait . . . he drove me to work, about thirty minutes from where we lived and then drove to wherever he was working, usually within fifteen minutes from me. He’s a painter and as such, doesn’t go to the same place all the time.

Anyway, the point is that we left the house at the same time each day and arrived back at the exact same time each day–neither one was home any longer than the other. When we got home, neither of us felt like doing anything. It didn’t take very long and I realized that I like food too much to make an issue of working more when I got home–the desire for a good dinner outweighed my tiredness. So I told Michael that I’d go ahead and cook dinner when we got home but after that, if he was sitting doing nothing, so was I. (This included cleaning up after eating.) He seemed to be okay with that.

We were a mess that first year! I quickly learned to buy paper plates because they could be thrown away and not have a moldy mess on our hands. Paper plates saved our marriage! LOL

Soon thereafter, we paid my baby sister to come clean for us once a week. Oh my! She really earned the pittance we paid her. She vacuumed, did dishes, and laundry. I think she may have even mowed the yard! I have no idea how long that lasted, hmmm, maybe she does. She was a huge help!

My other sister got married the same day I did (double wedding) and remember sitting at the laundromat, right up the street from where Michael and I lived, with her one time as we waited on the clothes to wash. We talked about how difficult it was to work and come home and work some more. The difference was she and her husband did not have the same work arrangement Michael and I did but there was also another big difference, I was not afraid to have an argument with Michael about something just to keep the peace whereas she said they never argued.

See I would not trade those early arguments for peace because we used them to work through situations not just argue. I’m sure there was a better way to work through them but neither of us had the self-control we do now. But each ‘fight’ was worked through and we were at peace. Whereas my sister and her husband did not fight but were definitely not at peace. I counseled her that day to stick up for herself, talk to him, and let him know how she felt. Of course I did not advocate yelling and screaming because even I knew back then that wasn’t the best way to deal with differences.

Somewhere  along the way, we settled into a rhythm and things were good. After a few years, I got pregnant and after delivering our precious Brian, I stayed home with him. So then keeping house became my job; one I did not excel at–hmmm, still don’t but I get by, but I digress.

As time passed and we had more children and they grew and I home educated them, keeping the house picked up was difficult and a sore subject with Michael. My argument at that point was that we actually lived in our house 24/7 and all that living is messy. Thankfully I found Flylady and learned how to stay on top of the cleaning, finally learning a method instead of something being so dirty I couldn’t take it any more.

We began a daily pick-up time when we knew Michael was on his way home, so that he was not greeted with a huge mess when he walked into the house. We also began a ‘home blessing’ day where we split the chores (the kids and I) and had the house vacuumed, swept, mopped, dusted. windows and mirrors cleaned, and bathrooms cleaned in less than an hour.

It was smooth sailing for a number of years. As the kids grew and started working outside the home, those of us left, absorbed their duties. It’s a bit harder today for me to stay on top of all that cleaning. I have a set of chores I do daily (one load of laundry completely done to putting it in the appropriate room, emptying the dishwasher and refilling it, making meals, and vacuuming–well most days) but am floundering a bit to find the right method for getting those other things done consistently now that it is just me, with some help from Tiffany who works at home. But I will come upon a solution/method, I have no doubt.

Oh, when animals came into the picture, it was at the children’s request and thus their responsibility. To this day, Tiffany and Sean tend to the needs of the animals. I do buy the required items for their care but that is it.

I guess all this is to say that there is a method whereby you can handle all the chores that need to be done without stressing and arguing. Michael has grown much in our nearly thirty years together and still pitches in when he sees something that needs to be done be it a load of his work clothes that he ran out of or mopping the bathroom floor. I too have grown and have learned that just because he sees some task that needs doing and does it that is not an indictment or accusation of me, which I tend to feel since it is technically my ‘job’ to do.

Are we perfect? Heavens no!!! I just had a breakdown last week because of some stuff that needed doing and couldn’t do it alone. But . . . we get over it and do what needs to be done.

This has gotten long but I hope it has been helpful. If you are struggling with getting it all done, pray and ask God to help you find the method/system that will work for you. Check Flylady–she’s helped thousands tame the messy house beast.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

Rain and Birthday

Last weekend we got lots of rain! It rained so much that there were flash flood warnings. With as much precipitation as we got, we decided we would not even attempt heading out to church Sunday. Then later this week I found out that we had made the right decision because our routes off our hill were flooded!

Rain and Birthday ~ Lifeofjoy.me

It is so nice when you make a decision and later realize that you were following the leading of the Lord without knowing you were doing so. We would have gotten up early, gotten dressed, and rushed out the door only to get five to ten minutes down the road and have to turn around. Then we would have tried alternate routes but would have ended up back at home, frustrated. Thankfully, we spared ourselves the hassle, slept in, and had a good lazy day, hoping we’d made the right decision.

Rain and Birthday ~ Lifeofjoy.meThen the electricity went out. Normally when this happens we are not overly bothered by it, as it generally comes back on rather quickly. However, on the heels of the water being out, we were all a bit antsy.

After about thirty minutes of it being off, Michael and Sean got the generator out of the shed. :D That was an ordeal and they said they were going to put it somewhere easier to retrieve when they put it back.

They no sooner got it hooked up and the electricity came back on. :) How’s that for timing? The funnier thing is that Sean came into the house and the living room lights were on, right in the room he was standing in, and he didn’t even notice. Of course, Tiffany and I probably confused him because we were still huddled together at the kitchen table over a cookbook by lantern. :D We hadn’t taken the time to turn it off and the ceiling light back on.

We were very thankful that it came back on so quickly. There’s nothing like being without one of the comforts you normally have to make you appreciate them all and make you a bit overly cautious and maybe even a little paranoid when something stops working as usual.


This weekend is my birthday. Since we are on the ketogenic way of eating, our usual celebration foods are out and we are learning to appreciate new foods.

Tiffany is a doll and is giving me the day off on my birthday. She will be the cook for the family and for me. I pre-made the biscuits for breakfast sandwiches, to make it a tad bit easier on her. Especially because she worked soooo hard on my cake!

Birthday cake ~ Lifeofjoy.meThat my friends, is a 3 Layer Chocolate Candy Bar Cake! Oh my Gosh!!! She did such an amazing job on it. It is in the refrigerator because the frosting is whipped cream and cream cheese with chopped up Lily’s chocolate candy bars.

I have never made a three or more layered cake before. I’ve only ever made one cake with two layers before and that has been since I started this blog.

Here is the link to the videos to make the cake and the frosting. They are by Cooking Keto with Kristie. We love her stuff! The biscuits I made were from her cookbook.

Here is another picture of that awesome cake in progress. I can’t wait to taste it! This is before that third layer got placed on top.

Cake Mid-Way ~ Lifeofjoy.meDoesn’t that look delicious?!? I had to play tetris with the contents of my refrigerator in order to fit it in there. I can just imagine how moist this is going to be.

Well, I’m off to have a grand weekend with my family! I hope you have a great weekend too.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

Great Resource

I checked out My Joy-Filled Life last week, to see if the monthly scripture handwriting was available. While I was there a few things caught my eye.

 

First there was this post with lots of links for games to make grammar fun. There are some really great ideas here!!! Check it out!

 

Then there was this one for cardboard box adventures. :) It even has a book suggestion to go along with this idea.

 

 

This also caught my eye. Apparently she has activities/links to activities to do based on a book month (like Five in a Row). So cool! This is the one that I saw and as I looked it over and got to the bottom, I saw she has lots of stories done and/or planned. What a great resource for mommies with little ones.

 

This is a great resource. I hope you’ll find something there you can use.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

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