The mill...

Above, my sweet friend Fran came to visit me a few days ago, and a little lunch date we came back to the apt. to do a little baking! As some of you know I mill the flour for most of my flour foods that we eat. Things like our bread, biscuits, cakes, pancakes, muffins, and on and on. I first learned about milling your own wheat while in college from the woman who discipled me (Jen Devine). After Jen and another close girlfriend became so convinced of this being the only way to eat bread and many other flour products, I became very intrigued and decided to do some research myself. There is a wonderful website for any of you interested in why this is so important at www.breadbeckers.com.

"At The Bread Beckers, we believe one simple thing can change your life: real food. Our mission is to show you how easy real food is to make and how delicious it is to eat...Here's why. What passes for food today bears little resemblance to the living organisms God created. The only way to know what you're eating is to make it yourself. We'll teach you how to do it in just a few minutes a day and help you take the first steps to a healthier life. Fatigue, sinus problems, constipation, high cholesterol and even warts are just some of the conditions our customers and our own families have overcome by rejecting processed foods and fueling our bodies with the whole, delicious fuel they were designed to use."

This is basically their mission statement and after reading many of the articles under the information part of the website I really felt like the Lord was leading me into a healthier lifestyle for myself and my family one day by milling my own wheat to make my own wheat and flour products. If my body is my temple because the holy spirit lives inside of me then I want to be putting good nutrient rich healthy things in it!Above is Fran holding my mill. Now this was an investment for me and I saved money for about 3 months to buy it! But now that I own it, I am so happy that I do!
Here I am just pouring some what into the mill while it's grinding it into fresh flour...
Then, tadaa! Fresh flour!
So today Fran and i decided to make homemade bread and some chocolate chip muffins. Both jam packed of fiber and all the goodness that comes along with freshly milled flour.
Adding a little cinnamon to our muffins...
and the picture above is our bread dough after it had been kneaded in the mixer for about 7 minutes...
Here are the muffins getting ready to get popped into the oven!
And above is the bread dough getting ready to rise for about 2 hours. The bread can be quite a time consuming task so I only cook it on days when I know I have at least 3 hours to dedicate to it! But the good thing about that is that for about two of those hours it is rising which is great time to get some laundry done or do some reading!

Did you know that after a grain of wheat has been cracked it begins to oxidize (loose it's built in nutrients) immediately. If you don't use the flour it makes within 24 hours it is basically completely nutrient-less. Which is part of the reason I started making my own bread. I would love to go into great detail here but why not read it for yourself at breadbeckers website if you are interested! If you have any questions please feel free to post below or e-mail me at brett.kat.barton@gmail.com.

A neat opportunity...

So the other week Brett was asked to speak at a junior high FCA meeting. We were excited but didn't think to much about it really. Well Brett shared his testimony and I shared a little bit of my testimony as well. He did such an awesome job! After the meeting we both started talking with some of the parents that were there. One of the mom's asked me if I would be interested in talking to a group of high-school girls that she leads in bible study and Sunday school each week. And if you know me I am always open to talking to young women about what God has done in my life in hope's that they would learn from my mistakes. I'm always eager to plant seeds in women!

So I was excited to talk to some girls b/c I had not really had an opportunity like that to be as bold as I want and share as much as I want since I've been at MSU. There were 5 girls and two moms who came to the YMCA last week to play games and listen to what God has laid on my heart to share. After finishing sharing my testimony and the relationships diagram, I had an awesome conversation with one of the mom's. She was such an encouragement and it was so neat to see her heart for these young girls.

I wanted to follow up with one of the girls and spend a little more time with her, so we are hanging out this Sunday afternoon! Please pray for our time together and pray that the Lord will continue to bless us through this opportunity and that He will continue to provide for our financial support in His timing!

Crafty Weekend...

This weekend Brett and I had a visit from a great friend...Hannah Hamilton! It was so fun to have a girl weekend with crafts and pictures and laughs! Hannah in my opinion is a super crafty girl so I was so excited for her to come visit so that we could do some fun things around the apartment.

Our first task was these two big picture frames above. I have had them for a few years now that I got on super discount for 3 dollars each. I couldn't pass them up at the time and am so glad that I didn't! After spending a long time in Hobby Lobby trying to get inspired we came across this idea in a book! After choosing some appropriate scrapbook paper and poster board it became a super cheap and super fun project!!

Next fun find on a dime weekend was this cute sign for the kitchen...couldnt pass it up at only $5.

Same goes for this metal art that we found at a steal for only $5 as well!

We also had so much fun crafting some new coffe mugs at a create your own pottery art place!! It was such a blast and we are pretty proud of the end result! We can't wait to see them after they get put in the kiln.

And he believed the Lord, and it was counted to him as Righteousness...

Don't you just wish we could could all have faith like Abraham. I am in the middle of a ten week study of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob by Beth Moore, and the Lord is teaching me so much! I wish I would have really investigated and tore apart Genesis sooner! There is no better place to begin to see the character of the Lord than on these pages! What a blessing it has been.

Brett and I just got home from a weekend in Murray Sunday night! It was so wonderful to be around so many people that we love so much in this world! The Lord has been so faithful building a ministry though us in MKY and it is such a privilege to continue to see them learning and growing from a distance. It was just such an encouraging trip for my heart. "And I am sure of this,that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace." Phil 1:6

(Hana & Hannah & I decided to have a photo shoot around Murray for an afternoon of free fun!)

(Above from left to right, Kayleigh, Hannah, Hana, Me, Lauren, Hilary)

Seeing all that God is doing and has been doing in Murray this past weekend really exited Brett and I to be at AState. We would love to be on our way there today but unfortunately we are still waiting and working here. We have not really had any movement in our support in about a month. This can be really discouraging if we let it. However, we are trying to remember truth and trust that God has us here and not there for a reason and when He is ready for us to be there, we will be. All we would ever want is for God's will to be accomplished in our lives, and we are trusting that is what He is doing.

Please continue to pray for the Lord's provision of our finances and provision for somewhere to live in Jonesboro. Brett and I would love to be praying for you specifically so please feel free to e-mail (brett.kat.barton@gmail.com) us and let us know how we can be praying!