Lent Week 6: The Blessing of Giving 👈

Mother Teresa said: “if you do something, and I do something, then together, we will do something beautiful for God.”

Here are some global income statistics from in 2023 to consider:

• The average global personal income is $9,733 per year.

• The average global household income is $12,235 per year. (zippia.com)

• The median per-capita household income is only $2,920 per year. (zippia.com)

• Making over $100,000 puts you in the top 10% of global earners, while making over $1 million puts you in the top 1%. (zippia.com)

• The minimum wage in Bangladesh is set to 1,500 Bangladeshi taka (BDT) or 14.62 USD a month. (skuad.com)

When we saw those number all we could say was WOW. Have you ever stopped to consider how truly blessed you are? Maybe you’re not a millionaire (or maybe you are), but we all have something or some way we can give to others. Whether it’s a donation to an honorable charity, sponsoring a child or family in need, volunteering of time to a food bank, helping an elderly person run errands, volunteering to help at church events or any number of God-honoring acts, the Lord will be pleased by your offering to Him. And have no doubt, our Father is faithful to provide for all His children and He loves when we have a giving heart.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8

Lent is the perfect season to consider making changes in your giving. Consider how your obedience to God in being a cheerful giver will have a ripple effect on the lives around you. It’s good to wisely budget your money, but Matthew 25:35-36 tells us the truth behind the heart and actions of giving. It’s in these acts that we bring a tiny glimpse the Kingdom of God down to earth here and now.

For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’ Matthew 25:35-36

May whatever you have planned to give to the Lord and to others be a holy and pleasing offering to the Lord. May He fill you with strength and his protection as you grow closer to Him.

Thanksgiving in Amish Country, Part III

Side view of the Carlisle Inn

part one

part two

Friday

It was snowing on Friday when we left, but it was the “good” kind of snow that doesn’t stick to the roads, so we weren’t worried about driving home.

After we packed up the car, we went to Der Dutchman for breakfast (part of staying at the Inn is that you get one free breakfast buffet at the restaurant), which was excellent. Buttermilk pancakes for the win!

Before we left, we stopped at the attached bakery to get some goodies to take home. I got a strawberry fry pie, ground coffee, bread and butter pickles, and Amish popcorn (apparently this is a big thing, Amish popcorn!). Mom and Dad also got some things. It was a really nice bakery, with plenty of items, from bread to doughnuts and other goodies. They also had things like mugs and gift baskets and candy.

Some of my bakery purchases.

On the way home we passed a lot of Amish farms and more buggies (I counted 11!) and Amish kids on bikes. There was more laundry on the line, and lots of cows, goats, horses, and sheep in the fields. Some people had their laundry hung on their covered porches, to keep it out of the wind and snow.

Hills behind the Inn.

This was a great trip that I’d long been wanting to take, and I definitely want to go back as soon as possible, hopefully in the spring so we can use the porches and balconies of the Inn!

Breakfast menu

Links to Places & Things

Carlisle Inn, Walnut Creek

Farmhouse Frocks

Der Dutchman Walnut Creek

Carlisle Gifts

Olde World Bakery and Bistro, Berlin

Berlin Craft Mall

Thanksgiving in Amish Country, Part II

Wednesday morning

part one

Wednesday

Wednesday was our big day out, since everything was closed on Thursday. Surprisingly, some stores were also closed on Wednesday or had shortened hours, so I was glad I’d done some research ahead of time and ID’d places that were open. Because of that, some of the places on our list we weren’t able to go to, but we can save them for next time.

We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed to Millersburg, where both my aunt and I wanted to hit Farmhouse Frocks.

Uncle Frank checking out the candles (which are awesome)

Farmhouse Frocks is run by a local woman and her two daughters and features clothing in sizes 5-28. All the clothing is made by Amish seamstresses from fabric that Lena (the owner) picks out. Clothes shopping really doesn’t get more local that this!

The shop carries clothing, accessories, and all sorts of home goods, from cowhide rugs to ornaments to kitchenwares and stationery. This is my kind of store and I could have spent hours in here!

We did spend about an hour and a half in here, trying on clothes and looking at everything. Aunt Judy and I got some great pieces—I got two dresses (two prints of the same dress) and a top, as well as two hair clips (I’m SO GLAD claw clips are back!) and a leather pouch, because my purse is like Mary Poppins’ bag, and I always need pouches to keep things organized.

All of the pieces that I got are versatile, beautiful, and comfortable. All important things! I was hoping I’d find some great things here, and Aunt Judy and I were not disappointed.

All decorated for Christmas!

After shopping we were, understandably, hungry. So, lunch time! This was a bit tricky because, as I said, some places were closed on Wednesday or had special hours. But fortunately we found a great cafe, the Olde World Bakery and Bistro in Berlin, right off of state route 39 (which is the main road that connects Millersburg, Berlin, Walnut Creek, and Sugarcreek.)

mmmm, bakery case!

The food here was delicious, and as an extra perk, the shop also makes their own sodas, including Cream Soda, which my dad and Aunt Judy love. I had the grilled cheese and tomato basil soup, which was perfect after a morning of shopping.

Perfection.

The bakery/cafe is part of a bunch of shops and craft malls, so after lunch mom, Aunt Judy, and I headed to the craft mall while the men checked out the leather and shoe shore. In the craft mall, I found some hand spun and hand dyed yarn! I totally wasn’t expecting that so it was a lovely surprise!

Yay, yarn!

It was a really nice day, sunny and sort of breezy and not too cold. I had my sketchbook with me so I was able to sketch a bit while people finished up their shopping.

After the antique/craft malls, we split up. Our hotel had a promotion with a local forge where guests could get a free commemorative ornament, so mom and dad and I headed out to Wendell August Forge. They’re actually based in Pennsylvania but have a local store in Berlin; we loved seeing all the Pittsburgh things! (Dad actually got a Pitt keychain, which probably proved lucky, since they just had their first 10 win regular season since nineteen eighty-one…..) Mom and I got some coasters and we all got our ornaments.

Another fun part of the store? They have the world’s largest Amish buggy!

It be BIG.

On the way back from the Forge, we saw this:

This was the first time on a trip I’d seen a horse and buggy in a parking lot. We actually saw five buggies that day (holy moly they’re loud I can hear them better than cars!), but since this one was parked I could actually get a photo.

We also saw a lot of Amish teenagers wearing the safety vests (you can see these in the back of the photo) while they rode bikes around the area. Most of them had saddlebags on their bikes and the teens seemed to be making deliveries. It also seemed like wash day in the area because a lot of the houses had their laundry on the line.

Once again we went to Der Dutchman for dinner—they were one of the only places open—but there was so much on the menu we wanted to try that we didn’t mind going there again! It was definitely much more crowded (see—no other place open!) but the service and food were still excellent. I had the local bologna and Swiss sandwich (YUM) with potato salad, and a sampler size of the fudge cake (Really, sampler size is all you need, it was a rich cake. So good.). (Yes, I think one must talk about food when one is talking about Amish Country, because the food is really good.)

Then back to the hotel (next door! Walk off dinner!) where we chatted for a little bit in the second floor gathering room. The hotel had filled up quite a bit from the night before; lots of people were checking in all day. Apparently some people do this every year (I can see why!) and they bring their entire extended families for the holiday.

Amish quilt work in the hallways.

Carolers tucked away on the second floor.

Stained glass details off the lobby.

Thursday

AKA, Thanksgiving!

We all slept in to varying degrees. It was raining so it was very cozy to enjoy a comfortable bed and watch the Harry Potter marathon on USA. (We got through the first and second movies before dinner.) Aunt Judy had stopped at a local market yesterday and picked up some lunch fixings, including baby Swiss cheese, so lunch was delicious.

I sketched a bit, then put on one of my new dresses, as well as a necklace mom had gotten me at Carlisle Gifts. Around 4:15 we headed down to the basement event center for dinner.

There weren’t just hotel guests, there were people from all over the area, so apparently this is a big thing, and after we ate, we could see why—it was great! It was buffet style but there were waiters and waitresses who took drink orders and cleared your plates.

Table setting.

Sadly I didn’t get photos of the buffet, bad me, but it was really good. There was turkey, ham, chicken, and bunch of sides to choose from, including Amish noodles (which my dad tried). The mashed potatoes were particularly good! There was also an entire table of pie, plus spice cake trifle.

It was pretty easy to walk away satisfied, let me tell you.

A quilt on display near the banquet room.

View of the lobby from the staircase

After dinner, we played Apples to Apples for a bit, and then sadly we had to go pack up. Aunt Judy and Uncle Frank were leaving before us in the morning so we said good-bye then—which I hate doing, but I was so glad that we’d gotten to spend time together!

Packing was hard, since my suitcase didn’t have room for all the things I’d bought! But we managed to get everything a bag and in the car—success! (Yarn takes up space, people!)

Thanksgiving in Amish Country

This Thanksgiving my family decided to do something different—we took a road trip! We decided to go to Holmes County, Ohio, and spend Thanksgiving in Amish Country.

Ohio has the largest Amish population in the country, and “Amish Country” really includes quite a few areas in Northeastern Ohio, but the epicenter, if you will, is in Holmes County, around the areas of Millersburg, Berlin, Walnut Creek, Charm, and Sugarcreek.

My parents had taken a day trip up to Holmes County years ago and had really enjoyed it, and when my grandmother spent a weekend there recently, Mom thought it would be fun for us to go there for Thanksgiving, along with my dad’s middle sister, Judy, and her husband.

The view from my balcony

I had only been to Millersburg once, to attend a wedding of a college friend who grew up there. But I’d been interested in Amish culture for a long time and I’d always anted to spend more time there, so when my parents suggested this trip, I was totally on board.

We stayed at the Carlisle Inn in Walnut Creek, which put us really close to Millersburg and Berlin. The plan was to get there Tuesday, spend Wednesday shopping and exploring, chill on Thursday (since everything was closed for the holiday), and leave on Friday.

This will be in a few parts so that it’s not a huge deluge of text and photos.

Tuesday

We only live about two hours from Holmes County, but there’s no direct way to get there, really, so we took the “back” roads—what the Ohio Department of Transportation calls the “Amish Byway”. I had been on this route once, but I’d forgotten how hilly it is here! (People who say Ohio is flat haven’t really seen Ohio.)

We arrived at the Inn around the same time as my aunt and uncle, who were making the trip with us. My Aunt Judy is my dad’s “middle” sister (he has two older sisters), and I hadn’t really seen them since my brother’s wedding. We’d had lunch with them this past summer after Kelly’s wedding, but that’s not the same thing as really spending time with people, in a place where I can hear them. So it was great to see them.

We checked in and got settled into our rooms. The Inn was already decorated for Christmas and they did a wonderful job.

The lobby fireplace—a great place to sit and read or nap!

Almost every room has a balcony or porch, and garland and bows were strung from them. I’m sad it was too cold or too rainy to use the balcony—next visit!

Looking down from the second floor breakfast room.

Outside of every room were these lanterns, bedecked with a wreath and ribbon.

We had a very early dinner at Der Dutchman next door (it’s owned by the same company that owns in the inn), and it was delicious. I had broasted chicken, which, if you’re not familiar with it, is a way of cooking chicken that gives you crispy skin and juicy meat, without frying it. It’s an Amish specialty (sometimes you’ll see Bob Evans offer it, so you can try it then.). With it I had potato salad and green beans. Portions here are BIG, so be prepared. You get your money’s worth but it’s a lot!

We all had dessert, because, hello, PIE, but they also have a pie sampler, where you can get cuts of three different types of dessert. (We did this the second night and I have to say it really was a perfect size). I got the Butterscotch custard pie; my aunt had cherry, and my parents had the pie sampler.

I’m not a huge pie fan, but here, I definitely am. These were good pies.

There was a gorgeous sunset that night…

We spent the evening in front of the fire place, talking and enjoying catching up with each other. We al went to bed pretty early, which is one of the things I like about vacation—if you want to go to bed, go to bed! Want to stay up? Stay up! No worries!

I forgot to take pictures of my room (bad blogger), but every room has a wooden bedstead covered with an Amish-made quilt. There were also watercolors in the rooms, a small refrigerator, TV, and the bath/tub combination (which I love. I dislike places that only have showers!). The floors were wood with some inlaid carpet.

One o the things I really liked was that it was dark outside. No random electric lights, no light pollution—the night skies were gorgeous.

Because of COVID, you had to ask for maid service, and if you wanted fresh towels, you put your towels in the laundry bag outside the door. The housekeepers would then collect the bags and return them with fresh towels. The desk clerks all wore masks, as did the rest of the staff, but that was the only thing I really noticed, COVID wise.

Amish art in the lobby lounge.

Seven Quick Takes--Post Turkey

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Happy Post-Thanksgiving! I hope you had a lovely Turkey Day!

Patty certainly had a good day.

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We had Buca di Beppo. They had the normal menu (well, a smaller menu, as is usual these days) an then Thanksgiving meal which was very good. I really liked the stuffing, which had Italian sausage in it—WINNER. It was a little different than regular stuffing (or dressing, as some of you say), but I really liked it!

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OK time for business!

OK first: my ebook, Catholic 101, is on sale for FOUR DOLLARS. If you are a blog subscriber, you get even MORE off with your special coupon code! So if you aren’t a subscriber, sign up now and get the code!

This book is based on my experiences as a first grade CCD—as I was teaching the kids things, I noticed that parents and other adults didn’t know the stuff I was teaching the kids! So I decided to write an ebook about it.

The ebook is gift-able—you can email it to people!—printable, and also readable on any screen.

The sale runs through next Friday (Dec. 4), at midnight. You don't need a code or anything. Just go buy it. :)

Second, Ave Maria Press’s Black Friday deal is on. Using the code BLACK20 to get 30% off and FREE SHIPPING PLUS an Advent booklet (while supplies last) for free! You can get Living Memento Mori here.

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I got my first Christmas gift today from Tiff (aka Billy’s mom)—three books that I will probably spend the rest of the day devouring. That and also digging out in Orchard House—it’s a disaster. One of the biggest issues with not going out to shop is that I get so many BOXES AND BAGS delivered on a weekly basis. So they pile up fully quickly! So today I’ll be making several trips to the bulk trash and trash compactor.

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Normally I put my tree up tomorrow during the OSU/ Michigan game. But….that game is now next week, so my schedule is all off. :) So I might not get the tree up until next week but it’s all good, right? I would like to get the nativity set out this weekend.

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In what has become a Thanksgiving tradition, I watched Miracle on 34th Street (the original) last night while I worked on my Find Your Fade Shawl. It’s actually quite a lovely tradition, if I do say so myself.

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And speaking of knitting, this weekend I will start picking up the stitches for the cardigan collar! Wish me luck. :)