Hilling Highlights

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-20T22:31:00.002-05:00

An "Appealing" Family Outing

2008-10-16T23:06:00.002-04:00

Recently, our family visited Keeny's Apple Orchard near Brooklyn, MI. This is an outing we enjoy making in the Fall. The kids like climbing in the trees, picking, and sampling the apples. The owners said this was the best year they have had for apples in 10 years. They were all juicy, big, and delicious. We ended up with about 2 and a half bushels of Golden Delicious, Jona-gold, Northern Spy, Ida Red, and Macintosh apples. Below are some pictures of the kids at the orchard.

Josiah took a break from picking apples to try one. He said he had to sit down to eat it. He started eating it at the orchard, and didn't stop until we were about home.

"Lazy," Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer

2008-09-16T19:53:00.007-04:00

Wow! Here it is -- Sept. 20th, and on Monday, Fall will officially begin. The summer is nearly over, and what a busy summer it has been! I know it seems we've fallen off the blogging band wagon, but we're still here in our corner of the globe. We sorta felt like yo-yos this summer as we bounced back and forth from home to other places. In June, we went to visit my Mom and Stepfather for a few days. A couple weeks after we returned, Chris left for Youth Camp. Then it was July, and our vacation plans to WV were unexpectedly postponed. So, Chris' parents came up here instead. We celebrated Independence Day and Chris' birthday together and went to Sauder Village. A few days after they left, it was time to go to family camp. During the last week of July, we went to Indiana to meet up with my sister from Florida. When we got back home, VBS began at our church for the first full week of August. Finally, we were able to take our vacation to WV during the last week of August. We got home after Labor Day in time for the girl's to start school and Chris to begin his new part-time job at the hospital. Whew! What a summer! Somehow, we were able to find time to do some canning and freezing of fresh fruit and vegetables. We'll have some strawberries, peaches, corn, tomatoes and pickles to enjoy this winter, as well as some butternut squash and potatoes from the garden. All in all, we thank God for His blessings this summer, His protection, and the memories made with family and friends. Below are some pictures that highlight some memories from the summer:

Alayna with one of her favorite animals during our visit to Indiana.

How can you enjoy summer without making mud pies??

Taking a rest at Sauder Village

The best dressed chef in town.

All the cousins modeling their newly made t-shirts.

Mamaw giving Josiah a much needed haircut.

The kids and Daddy shucking corn

Part of the two bushels worth of corn neatly stacked in a pyramid, compliments of Melanie.

Sampling of pickles and diced tomatoes.

During our vacation to WV, we went to Smoke Hole Cavern. Below is a beautiful stalactite called the "Queen's Canopy."

Josiah trying out his musical skills on Grampy's mandolin.

Butterflies Flying Free

2008-06-04T11:55:00.003-04:00

Our butterflies have come out of their cocoons. Here are a few pictures of them before we released them. In the picture above, you can see the last butterfly right before she emerged. This was the only one we were able to watch as it came out of the cocoon. It happened so fast. After they were all out, we watched them in their habitat. We fed them "nectar" (a sugar- water mixture sprinkled on fresh flowers) and orange slices. They drink the juice.

On the day that we released them, we let the children get one out at a time. The butterfly would crawl up on their finger, and then they would lift it out! It was exciting to watch them fly away!

Miracles of Spring

2008-05-10T00:00:00.001-04:00

We have been enjoying an exciting experience recently at the Hilling household. A couple weeks ago, we sent off for live caterpillars. The children received this gift for your own butterfly habitat from Grammy and Grampy. They arrived in a special container with their own food supply included. It was fun to watch them literally grow overnight! They got so fat! The children watched them crawl around and eat. The girls named them all -- there were four.

After about a week, they had what they call their "J" day. This is when they hang from the top in the shape of a "J".

Then they begin to form their chrysalids. They can be in their chrysalids for 7 - 10 days. So, now we are watching them closely for that magical moment when they emerge as beautiful Painted Lady butterflies! What a miracle! They look so lifeless right now. It's hard to imagine anything spectacular going on. We will keep you posted on their progress.

Aside from the butterfly adventure, the children and I enjoyed gathering lilacs for a bouquet today. I love their beauty and fragrance! I like to bring some inside where I can enjoy them more.

April Showers

2008-04-15T09:43:00.003-04:00

The other day we had a little April shower. It didn't last long and when the sun came out, Alayna wanted to go outside and play. She enjoyed splashing in the puddles.

Melanie had to write a "sound poem" for English class. A sound poem uses alliteration and onomatopoeias (words that sound like their meaning). I thought it was perfect to go along with Alayna's pictures enjoying the spring weather. Here's the result of her efforts:

Warm Wet Weather
by Melanie Hilling

Warm wet weather
A breeze whistles through trees.
A busy bee buzzes by.
I sniff a flower. Achoo! I sneeze.
The birds twitter as they fly.
Twitter, whistle, buzz, achoo,
I love warm wet weather.
How about you?

Ladies' Tea Party

2008-04-12T20:21:00.008-04:00

Last week I hosted the bimonthly Ladies Day Out for our church. I decided to do an afternoon tea. I served chicken and egg salad sandwiches, dipped shortbread cookies, and orange scones with orange butter (pictured above), and of course, tea. Because I was so occupied with hosting the party, I forgot to take a single picture. Since we loved the scones so much, I made them again yesterday morning. If you'd like to try them, here's the recipe:

Orange Scones

2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold butter
1/3 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup chopped mandarin oranges, well drained
Additional sugar

ORANGE BUTTER:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon orange marmalade

1) In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, orange peel and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a bowl, whisk milk and egg. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Stir in oranges.
2) Turn onto a floured surface; knead 10 times. Pat into a 6-in. circle. Sprinkle with additional sugar. Cut into eight wedges.
3) Separate wedges and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat butter and marmalade until fluffy. Serve with warm scones.

Blowing Bubbles In The Snow

2008-03-25T11:25:00.000-04:00

I just had to take a picture of the kids today as they played with bubbles outside in the cold. They received large bubble wands for Easter, and were anxious to play with them. When Josiah asked me the second time, and I replied, "This is something we do outside on a warm day," he decided he wanted to go outside. So I thought, "Oh well, why not?". Here's the result -- winter coats and summer fun -- what a combination!

Happy Easter

2008-03-24T23:08:00.002-04:00

I trust all of you had a blessed Easter. Here are some pictures we took during the day yesterday.The children's Easter baskets.

We were proud of Josiah saying an Easter recitation for the very first time! I didn't know if he would do it, but he did very well. He said, "Jesus lives is what I say on this happy Easter Day!"

Melanie enjoys memorization. She says that she doesn't get stage fright because she's a pastor's daughter. It's neat to see how she improves each year, and is able to have longer parts.

Alayna was a Son-flower in "God's Garden" along with six other flower girls. She really enjoyed this part, because she likes sunflowers. She even has a few little sunflower plants in the windowsill, growing, waiting for warm weather to plant outside.

The kids cheesing in their Easter attire.

Lady Locks for Easter

2008-03-22T00:39:00.004-04:00

Well, I finally made "lady locks". Josiah calls them "goldilocks". These yummy little cream filled cookies are delicious, but quite an ordeal to make. Melanie wanted me to make them with green tinted filling for St. Patrick's Day, but because I was a day late, I made them with pastel colors for Easter. They turned out well and we enjoyed them -- there's only a few left! Thank you Mom H. for the recipe, and Dad H. for making the foil covered dowel rods for baking the cookies.

1 Year Anniversary

2008-03-20T10:30:00.003-04:00

One year ago we decided to try our hand at blogging. This makes our 162nd post. We have had 9,796 visitors -- including friends, family, strangers, fellow homeschoolers, Huckabee supporters, political allies and enemies. It's interesting to see what brings people to our blog. One common google search that brings people to our blog is "homemade chicken pot pie." Perhaps the most unique google search was "new born wall decorations" -- I guarantee you the poor soul didn't get what they were looking for -- they found a picture of Josiah after he flung spaghetti on the wall!

First, thank you for taking the time to visit and comment on our blog.

Second, We are unveiling a new blog today. At this point, Hilling Highlights will continue, with Esther making most of the posts. She will feature more recipes and family pictures, etc. Chris is going to take the politics and other issues that interest him to a new blog -- Another Perspective. Be sure to check it out!

Happy Birthday, Melanie

2008-03-15T12:15:00.003-04:00

On March 13th we celebrated Melanie's ninth birthday. She requested potato soup for her birthday supper. After the meal, she opened her presents from the family.

On Friday, Melanie celebrated her birthday with some friends from school. The birthday party had a horse theme. Therefore, we did a lot of "horsing around." Some of the activities are pictured below:

Melanie posing with her horse cake that Esther enjoyed making. Thanks, Mom H. for the new grass tip -- it came in handy.

We served hay (edible easter grass), sugar cubes, and apples and dip for all the fillies (and one colt - Josiah). The edible easter grass tasted just like straw - I don't recommend you buy any for your Easter baskets! As they munched on their snacks, they each drew pictures of horses.

These wooden horses were transformed into works of art with a few strokes of paint. It was interesting to see how each horse looked different. The white horse above is Alayna's, and Melanie made the palamino. Josiah even enjoyed painting a "rainbow" horse. He started out painting the entire horse red, then he added blue, then green, then yellow, then some more blue, etc. Somebody said that his horse was colorful, to which Josiah replied, "It's boo-tiful."

Melanie received nice gifts from her friends. It was a nice party, and great to get together with some of the girls from Jackson Christian.

Squaw Alayna

2008-03-15T12:10:00.003-04:00

This week, Alayna has been studying about Indians in Heritage Studies. She enjoyed the lessons so much, that she dressed up as an Indian after school. She made moccasins for her lesson, you can see them around her ankles. She put on her Indian dress that Grammy made for her. She also instructed us how the papoose was to be carried on her back.

The Parlour

2008-03-15T11:51:00.003-04:00

Chris' parents came up last weekend to celebrate Melanie's Birthday. We decided to make a stop at The Parlour for supper and ice cream. If you are ever in the Jackson area and like ice cream, The Parlour is a must stop! If you "Dare to Be Great" and can eat 21 scoops of ice cream by yourself, you get your dessert for free, and get your name put on the wall. Needless to say, none us were that daring.

Melanie's favorite ice cream is Mint Chocolate Chip.

No, those are not ALL mine!

Family Update

2008-03-05T11:20:00.003-05:00

Here's a few things that have happened with the kids during the last week:

Melanie constructed a candy house.

Alayna penned a scroll about the life of Nehemiah.

We found a "ball" bank for Josiah to match the sports theme border in his room.

Thank You, Mr. Huckabee ...

2008-03-05T10:29:00.003-05:00

Mike Huckabee was a like a breath of fresh air on the political landscape. Thinking back to last September, as I began studying the Republican candidates, Governor Huckabee rose to the surface. At the time I was leaning towards supporting Mike, and the Voters Value Debate sealed the deal. He was authentic. He was personable. He was a great communicator. He had values and was not ashamed of them. His faith directed his life.

Sadly, with Huckabee's withdrawal from the race, there only remains the hot air of Washington insiders who say "what needs to be said" to gain favor with others. Am I disappointed that Huckabee has lost? YES. At this point there is no candidate whom true conservative principled voters can rally around. Although disappointed, I am proud of the fact that I have supported a man of principle and integrity.

During his speech last night, Huckabee said, "I'd rather lose the election than lose the principles that got me into politics in the first place." Thank you, Gov. Huckabee for remaining true to your convictions. I, for one, will be looking forward to 2012.

Stirring Speech in Plano, TX

2008-02-22T09:52:00.003-05:00

People who say that Barak Obama gives great speeches, must not pay attention to Mike Huckabee. His speech this week in Texas was one of the best I have heard him deliver. You can feel the energy in the room. Those of you who haven't had your state primary, be sure to vote your principles, not politics!

If you have dialup, this speech is 35 minutes long, so it will take forever and a day to watch it, but if you have high speed internet, it's well worth your time. You can watch it here.

Belated Valentine's Day Post

2008-02-22T09:14:00.004-05:00

Here are some pictures from Valentine's Day:

Some roses I gave my wonderful wife. It's now over a week later, and the roses still look beautiful. If you live in the Jackson area, I highly recommend Bonnie's for your floral needs!

After a delicious meal featuring homemade chicken pot pie with hearts cut out in the top of the crust, we exchanged valentines.

For dessert, Esther made this heart shaped cookie.

We've Been Memed...

2008-02-13T21:54:00.002-05:00

Thanks to OneMom, a fellow Michigander, homeschooler, blogger, and Huckabee supporter, we have been tagged to participate in a meme. The rules are as follows:

Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. No cheating!
Find Page 123.
Read the first 5 sentences.
Post the next 3 sentences.
Tag 5 people.

On the filing cabinet beside my desk, I had a stack of over 10 books:

Roberts Rules of Order
Holy Bible
The Moral Compass, by William Bennett
90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper
Conquering The Fear of Death, by Spiros Zodhiates
The Year-Round Church Event Book, by Elmer Towns and Stan Toler
The Last Christian Generation by Josh McDowell
2007 Minister's Tax and Financial Guide by Dan Busby
Fresh Ideas by Diana Davis
The Journey, published by God's Bible School
Fresh Power by Jim Cymbala

I'll quote from Fresh Power:

"Part of our problem is that we have developed a religious industry whose machinery runs smoothly without any need of the Holy Spirit. A. W. Tozer once commented that if God were to take the Holy Spirit out of this world, most of what the church is doing would go right on, and nobody would know the difference. We have become set in our ways -- but they are not the ways of God's blessing and power."

Now, who shall I tag to keep this going?

Thanks for participating.

Huckabee didn't major in math, but did major in miracles.

2008-02-09T19:56:00.001-05:00

This is the first portion of the speech Gov. Huckabee gave today at CPAC. This man is the best communicator in the presidential race since Ronald Reagan, hands down. Anyone who questions Huckabee's conservatism needs to watch this speech, especially segment #4.

So far today, Huckabee won the Kansas caucus with a 3:1 ration over McCain. I believe he can win Louisiana and compete in Washington state. I'll update this blog as results come in.

Update: LA - 79% of precincts reporting: Huckabee - 44.5%; McCain - 40.1%
WA - 37% of precincts reporting: Huckabee - 26.9% ; McCain - 23.2%

Update2: LA - 90% reporting: Huckabee - 43.6%; McCain - 41.7%
WA - 78% reporting: Huckabee - 24% ; McCain - 25.7%; Paul - 21.4%

Note: In LA, the GOP candidate must win over 50% of the total vote before he is awarded delegates. With no candidate reaching that %, all of LA's delegates will be uncommitted going in to the convention.

Worms

2008-02-09T10:19:00.001-05:00

This week in her Science class, Melanie studied about worms. After her lessons, she made a hookworm, earthworm, and flatworm out of play-dough. I thought she did a great job.

Dr, Dobson Endorses Gov. Huckabee

2008-02-08T10:09:00.000-05:00

I took a couple days off of posting politics ... but this one was too good to pass up ...

Dr. James Dobson issued the following statement Thursday, speaking as a private citizen.

I am endorsing Gov. Mike Huckabee for President of the United States today. My decision comes in the wake of my statement on Super Tuesday that I could not vote for Sen. John McCain, even if he goes on to win the Republican nomination. His record on the institution of the family and other conservative issues makes his candidacy a matter of conscience and concern for me.

That left two pro-family candidates whom I could support, but I was reluctant to choose between them. However, the decision by Gov. Mitt Romney to put his campaign "on hold" changes the political landscape. The remaining candidate for whom I could vote is Gov. Huckabee. His unwavering positions on the social issues, notably the institution of marriage, the importance of faith and the sanctity of human life, resonate deeply with me and with many others. That is why I will support Gov. Huckabee through the remaining primaries, and will vote for him in the general election if he should get the nomination. Obviously, the governor faces an uphill struggle, given the delegates already committed to Sen. McCain. Nevertheless, I believe he is our best remaining choice for President of the United States.

(NOTE: Dr. Dobson made these statements as a private citizen. This article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as a reflection of the opinions of Focus on the Family or Focus on the Family Action.)

Now the question of the day is whether it's possible for Huckabee to beat McCain. This endorsement helps. Romney putting his campaign on hold helps. Still, it is going to be a long row to hoe. Who would have thought Huckabee had a chance? He's overcome negative press, attack ads, and being ignored by the media. Here are a couple great links that talk about the coming primaries and Huckabee's chances:

Valentine's Dipped Cherry Cookies

2008-02-06T12:26:00.000-05:00

Esther made these cookies for Women of Worth on Monday. They were a hit, and she will be making them again for a church fellowship this Sunday. Here's the recipe:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar, divided
1 cup cold butter
1/2 cup finely chopped maraschino cherries, drained
1 bag of white chips
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Red decorating sugar

In a large bowl, combine flour and 1/2 c. sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Knead in the cherries, 2/3 c. white chips and almond extract until dough forms a ball.

Shape into 3/4 inch balls. Place 2 inches apart or ungreased baking sheets. Flatten slightly with a glass dipped in remaining sugar. Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. remove to wire wracks to cool.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt remaining white chips; stir until smooth. Dip half of each cookie into the melted white chocolate; sprinkle with red decorating sugar. Place on waxed paper until set. Yields about 4 dozen.

(This recipe is adapted from Country Woman, Dec./Jan. 2008)

Super Tuesday is over ...

2008-02-06T10:50:00.000-05:00

... so we'll take a break from politics for a little while.

Here are some pictures of events in our life during the last few weeks:

A new niece - Sarah Lou. Sarah was born on January 10th. Congratulations, Kevin & LouAnn.

Alayna really liked school the day she shaped letters out of cookie dough for spelling class!

More Snow?? We are (Esther corrected me ... only I am) starting to get weary of the winter weather. This snow came during the last few days of January. Yesterday it melted. And today, we're supposed to get hit again. At least the kids and Esther like it.

Romney Reverses Position Again ...

2008-02-05T22:06:00.001-05:00

I found this over on OneMom's blog ... it's too good not to share:

Mike Huckabee on CNN:

“Yesterday, Gov. Romney instructed me not to whine and now he has changed his position and is now for whining, as evidenced by his reaction to the W. Virginia results”