Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you. - John Owen

Saturday, December 31, 2011

2012

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!  May your journeys of 2012 be blessed and may you have much joy in our precious Lord and Saviour.  May each step of your way be ever towards Christ and may He be your passion and everlasting reward. 

We are thankful for you all. 

To God be the Glory,
Love,
Hannah for the Armours

1 Corinthians 1:31
"He who glories, let him glory in the Lord."

2 Corinthians 5:17
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

Friday, December 30, 2011

Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls


Every Christmas morning, we have cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  We place them in the shape of a cross with three candles across.  Then we sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus and the younger boys blow out the candles. 
This is by far our favorite recipe.  We've used it for a couple of years now and it's a great hit!  It yields 24 rolls, so, to my brothers' great disappointment (they love leftovers! :), we are going to 1/2 the recipe from now on.  :)
I like to make these the day before and refrigerate them overnight.  I let them finish rising in the morning and then bake them.  This makes everything less crazy on Christmas morning.  :)


Ingredients:

Dough:

1 C milk
1/2 C (1 stick) butter
1 C water
1 Tbsp active dry yeast
1 C white sugar
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
6 C flour (Last time I made this recipe, I used 1/3 wheat flour and they turned out amazing!)

Filling:

3 tsp ground cinnamon
2 C dark brown sugar
1/2 C butter, softened

Topping:

2 C confectioners' sugar
1 (3 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp milk

Directions: (I've made some slight changes from the original recipe and added in my own comments.)

Warm the milk in a small saucepan, stirring occasionally, until it bubbles, then remove from heat.  mix in the butter and stir until melted.  Add the water and let cool until lukewarm.

In a large bowl (I use a Kitchen Aid stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook) combine the milk mixture, yeast, white sugar, salt, eggs, and 2 C flour.  Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 C at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes (the mixer does most of this for me!).

Divide the dough into 2 pieces. Roll each piece into a 12x9 inch rectangle (I usually make it larger). In a bowl, mix the cinnamon and brown sugar.  Spread each piece with half of the butter and half of the cinnamon/brown sugar mixture.  (I mix all three ingredients together and dot the dough with the mixture.)  Roll up the dough, using a little water to seal the seam. 

Cut each roll into 12 slices using dental floss or a very sharp knife (I find that a sharp serrated knife works best.).  Place rolls into two well greased 9x13 baking pans.  Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about one hour.  Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. 

To make frosting; mix the confectioners' sugar, cream cheese, butter and vanilla.  Add milk gradually until frosting reaches spreading consistency.  Spread over warm (but not hot) cinnamon rolls.  Be generous!  :)

ENJOY!

I made the smile and Elijah took care of the nose!  :-) 
Sorry the color is so funny.  They looked much better in real life. 
And...the finished product.

Jonnie Boy

Dear, dear Jonnie,

Happy 7th Birthday, buddy!  I love you so much and I hope that you have a wonderfully fun birthday. 
Wow!  How time flies!  It was just last year that you turned 6!  :)  But really, it wasn't that long ago that you were only a baby.  I can clearly remember the day that you were born and how scared I was when Mama had to have an emergency C-section.  God graciously preserved your life that day and I can't imagine life without you today.  All of these years, you've been such a sweet guy and I love that you're my "huggy buggy".  God has been so gracious to me in giving me a brother like you.  I am so excited to see what else God has planned for your life.
May the Lord use you to bring glory to Himself, for He alone is worthy. 
You are such a special littlest brother! I love you, Jonnie!
To God be the Glory,
Love,
Hannah 

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Raspberry Cherry Pie

I made this pie at Mama's special request for her birthday yesterday.  I've never made a cherry pie before and was really nervous about how it would turn out.  Everyone really enjoyed it, though, so I thought that I'd share the recipe.
Ingredients:

Crust: (This is my favorite crust, but feel free to use your own recipe.)

3 C flour
1 C (2 sticks) butter
6-8 Tbsp very cold ice water

Filling: 

1 1/2 C sugar
3 Tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
2 C fresh raspberries, or thawed frozen unsweetened raspberries
1 C fresh, frozen or canned pitted tart red cherries
1 tsp lemon juice

(Below are the measurements that I used.  I have a large, deep pie plate and this filled it just to the top.)
2 C sugar
6 Tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
2 C fresh raspberries
2 15 oz cans pitted tart red cherries, drained
1 tsp lemon juice

Directions:

For crust:

Mix together flour and butter with pastry blender (I prefer to use my hands) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Mix in the water until the dough forms a ball.  Do not work with the dough more than needed.  Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.

For the filling:

While the crust is refrigerating, in a bowl combine sugar and tapioca.  Add the raspberries, cherries and lemon juice.  Toss to coat.  Let stand for 15-20 minutes. 

Remove crust from refrigerator.  Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1/2 of the dough to fit into a 9 inch pie plate.  Trim the crust even with the edge.  Spoon the filling into the crust.  Dot with butter.  Roll out the remaining dough to fit the top of pie. Make decorative cutouts if desired.  I used cookie cutters for this pie.  

Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on a wire rack.  Store in the refrigerator.

ENJOY! 


Sunday, December 25, 2011

To a Wonderful Mama

Dearest Mama,

Happy Birthday! 

You are such an inspiration to me as I see where you've come from and what God has done in your life.  You bless me more and more every day and I love you SO much!

To me, you are a priceless treasure and I know that the rest of your grateful family can say the same.  I love the funny, clever, quick witted comments that you make once in a while and how you make me laugh.  I love your smile your laugh, and your servant's heart.  I love your delicious cooking.  I love listening to Handel's Messiah while working in the kitchen with you.  I love how you stay strong in the Lord through the hard times. I love seeing your devotion to Papa, and your love for him. I love witnessing your sweet care of your family.  I love the Lord's grace and mercy to me in giving me a dear friend in you.  I love so many things about you, but most of all, I love seeing Christ in you.  You are a testimony to His perfect grace and mercy. 

May you have a blessed birthday!  I love you! 

To God be the Glory,
Love,
Hannah


Mama, pregnant with me. 
Mother's Day 1997. 
Mama and Elijah. 
Jeremiah napping with Mama who is pregnant with Christian. 
Mama and little baby Christian. 
Playing baseball at the park. 
Mmmm...ice cream! :) 

Merry CHRISTmas!

 
Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
 
 
 
 
Matthew 1:21
And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”

 
Luke 1:31-32
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.  And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
 
Luke 2:52
And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!  I hope and pray that yours is blessed as you remember the true meaning of CHRISTmas! 

To God be the Glory,
Hannah for the Armour Family

Monday, December 19, 2011

Missouri Trip {Part Two}

A mural on the wall of a western store that we stopped at.
During the second half of our trip,  Amanda got her wish - to see her brother!  She hasn't seen him for 5 months, as he has been in basic training. Her excitement was so evident!  It was so fun to watch her when she saw Derek.  She said "Is that my brother?  He's HUGE!"  Then, as soon as we stopped, she scrambled out of the vehicle and literally "attacked" Derek, almost knocking him over.  I was blessed to be a witness of this and it was so obvious that she loves her brother. 
OK, so here's some pictures of our time together:



We went out for lunch later that day. 
Amanda, examining Derek's dog tags. 
Here's the mess that Amanda and I left after getting ready for the dinner.  We had a major time cut (20 minutes rather than an hour!) and had to hurry to get ready!
Here we are in front of our "mess". (after the dinner)
Amanda and Mr. Richter.
Singing the National Anthem before the ceremony.
"Yes, Sergeant!" 

We also went to a museum.  Here's Amanda "driving" a boat. :) 
That night, we watched the NFR (National Finals Rodeo)... 
...and I studied Greek. 
Beware of.........AMANDA! :) 
We went to a cute little diner near our hotel for lunch.  The food was delicious! 
Here's our reflection on the outside of the diner.  Praise God that we got home safely and are now reunited with our families!  Our trip was wonderful and we made some amazing memories.