Great Homeschooling Blog

Hi Everyone! With school about to start across the country, and with families deciding whether or not they want to homeschool, I wanted to share a great homeschooling website/blog, Heart of the Matter:

http://heartofthematteronline.com/category/hotm-blog/

Please check it out! There are some great educational tips, as well as information on crafts, curriculum, and just about anything else you can imagine. I know when I started out, I really didn't know much about what to do, and was craving information. I'll try to list some more resources for you guys, as soon as I can.

Blessings,
Mandy

Spenditol: A Bit of Humor, For a Bad Situation

This is very funny!



You can visit the website by going to http://www.spenditol.com/

Cut, Cap, and Balance Act: Vote is Tonight

The House of Representatives is voting tonight on the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act. Earlier today I received an email stating that there were 7 undecided House Republicans.  Please call now, and urge them to vote for the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act tonight.  Here they are:

Rep. Paul Broun- 202-225-4101 

Rep. Michael Burgess- 202-225-7772 

Rep. Morgan Griffith- 202-225-3861  

Rep. Ron Paul- 202-225-2831 

Rep. Ted Poe- 202-225-6565 

Rep. Denny Rehberg- 202-225-3211 

Rep. Steve King- 202-225-4426

Mandy's Mexican Stuffed Red Bell Peppers Recipe

Thought that I would share my recipe for Mexican Stuffed Red Bell Peppers with you.  Hope that you enjoy! =)

Mandy’s Mexican Stuffed Red Bell Peppers 

(serving size, 1 stuffed bell pepper)

7 Red Bell Peppers

Large Pan or Casserole Dish

Cajun Seasoning, such as Tony Chachere’s

1 lb of 93% Lean Ground Meat

½ cup of cooked White Rice

½ cup of cooked Brown Rice

2 cups frozen cut-up Onion & Bell Peppers mix (you can substitute fresh)

1 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1 can Rotel

1 can Black Beans (drained & rinsed)

½ to ¾ cup of frozen Corn

2 cups fresh Baby Spinach

3 Tbsp fresh Cilantro (chopped)

Kraft 2% Pepperjack Cheese slices
Drizzle of Olive or Canola Oil

First, prepare your Red Bell Peppers by cutting the tops and gutting the seeds.  Set aside and preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  

On the stove, cook Onion & Bell Pepper mix with a drizzle of olive or canola oil, until they start to appear translucent. Add the Minced Garlic & cook for a few minutes more.  Add Ground Meat and season with Tony Chachere's, or other cajun seasoning.  Once the Ground Meat is completely cooked through, add the Rotel, Black Beans, & Corn.  Cook at a medium heat for approximately 10-15 minutes. Add the chopped Cilantro & Baby Spinach.  Cook for 5-10 more minutes, until Spinach is completely cooked.  Now stir in the cooked White & Brown Rice.  Your filling is now finished.

Fill the Red Bell Peppers with the filling that you’ve just made.  Put your filled Bell Peppers into your pan or casserole dish, standing up.  (Tip: depending on the size of your pan, you may need to put wads of aluminum foil around them, to keep them from falling over).  

Put your pan in the oven and cook for 20 minutes.  Take the pan out of the oven and top each bell pepper with ½ slice of the Kraft 2% Pepperjack Cheese.  Cook for an additional 10 minutes.  Take the pan out the oven and let it rest for approximately 5 minutes.  Then eat and enjoy!

Per Serving Nutritional Information

245 calories

6g Fat

20g Protein

6g Fiber

The Separation of Church and Hate

 via

Over the 4th of July weekend, Pastor Andy Stanley at North Point Community Church in Atlanta, GA preached a sermon called The Separation of Church and Hate. This message poses the question "Are we making a point or making a difference?"

"Are we making a point or making a difference? It's easier to make a point; to adopt a policy; to put up a billboard or hand out a pamphlet. Making a difference is messier. It requires relating to people with whom you may not agree. But that is what Jesus modeled. In this message, Andy shows us why relational evangelism - despite being more complicated and despite looking inconsistent at times - is what we were called to as a church." (via here)

Check out the snippets below or click here to view the entire message. 

In His Love,

Lindsey Christmas

Freedom, Can We Hold Onto It?

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.” ~Ronald Reagan

As I think about the state of our country and economy, I can’t help but think of this quote from Ronald Reagan.  Could our country be on the verge of falling apart when we “pass it to our children”? Do the majority of American people really even care or realize what’s happening in this country?

I’ve often felt that there is a lot of apathy in this country when it comes to politics.   A general “I don’t vote, so don’t blame me” mentality.  That our freedom is just being taken for granted.  And, usually, when you take something for granted…you lose it. It makes me think about that old saying, “You never know what you have, until it’s gone”.  But, in this case, I believe that once the America we know is gone, it may be too late.

Today is day 803, since our country has passed a budget. All because there are too many people in Congress who care more about spending money on their little pet projects, than about the future of America.  Government programs and spending are out of control!  Now don’t get me wrong. There are real, legitimate programs that need funding. But, I’m getting tired of the government telling me that I need to sacrifice and budget my money, when they obviously don’t even understand the concept of the word budget! I read an opinion piece over the weekend by Brandon Greife, which really summed it up for me. He said,

 “Our federal government is like a teenager who has been handed the keys to a high-performance sports car. Over the past several decades the car has been picking up speed, recklessly testing the limits of our nation’s credit, and now it’s careening toward a debt crisis.” (You can read the rest of Brandon Greife's article on foxnews.com by clicking here)

Well said Mr. Greife! Now someone needs to tell Congress to put on the brakes! 


God Bless!
Mandy Sonnier

Dear Senators, Where Is The Budget?

It's been 798 days since our Senate has passed a budget.  Please follow the link below and sign the petition urging your Senators to pass a budget.  Together, we can hold our Senators accountable and make sure that they do what they were elected to do. 

http://sgpaction.com/whereisthebudget

Thanks so much!

Liberty and Justice

2 Corinthians 3:17 NKJV

Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.


“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation UNDER GOD, indivisible, with LIBERTY and JUSTICE for all.”

I think sometimes that we, as Americans, forget about those two words “liberty” and “justice”.  The signers of the Declaration of Independence stood up for exactly that, when they signed their names to that document over 200 years ago in 1776.  They did so under persecution and death threats so that we could live our lives in complete freedom.  They were willing to stand up and fight for what they believed in….Freedom, no matter what the cost. 

They also knew that founding a nation on an Almighty God was essential, and that through Him are where our freedoms ultimately come from.  Look no further than the 2^nd paragraph of the Declaration to see it:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

As Independence Day weekend is upon us, remember that without God there would be no freedom. All over the nation this weekend, people are gathering together with family & friends. I hope that while you are all gathered together that you take the time to pray for our nation, our leaders, and maybe even take the time to say the Pledge of Allegiance.  Not because you have to, but because of our Founding Fathers and all who died fighting for freedom, you can! 

God Bless,

Mandy Sonnier

Please stand with us & others on July 3 to pray for our nation. www.call2fall.com