My grandmommy lived with us from the time I was thirteen until Jesus called her home, about twelve years. Some days I loved it. Some days I was frustrated by it. Now, I’d give anything to be living under the same roof with her again. She was so wise, so gentle, so giving, and so encouraging. But what I miss the most was hearing her talk about her Savior. Her face lit up and she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that He was completely worth surrendering to. No amount of pain, sorrow, or suffering would ever shake her faith. It only made her run harder and faster to Him. She amazed me!
Every morning I woke to the sound of her cooking in the kitchen. But Saturdays were different. It was never the usual smell of oatmeal, prunes and grapefruit. Instead it was a sweet smell that swept through the house, summoning us to the table. Cinnamon rolls, coffee cake, pancakes, crepes, waffles, and French toast were frequently on the menu. Her presentation was impeccable, the table set beautifully, and of course there was enough for anyone who might walk through the door unexpectedly.
Every morning I woke to the sound of her cooking in the kitchen. But Saturdays were different. It was never the usual smell of oatmeal, prunes and grapefruit. Instead it was a sweet smell that swept through the house, summoning us to the table. Cinnamon rolls, coffee cake, pancakes, crepes, waffles, and French toast were frequently on the menu. Her presentation was impeccable, the table set beautifully, and of course there was enough for anyone who might walk through the door unexpectedly.
To this day, I still wake up on Saturday mornings longing for something sweet. My prayer is that I too can someday call my children to a table full of not only sweet food, but of sweet conversations about the unconditional love and faithfulness of our Father.
Today I want to share a recipe that I enjoyed having on Saturday mornings with my grandmommy. No it’s not exactly healthy. But she always told me it was because it had oranges in it, which meant I didn’t have to take my vitamin C that morning.
My grams called it an “orange julup.” Unfortunately, everything she made was from a recipe in her head. I don’t think I ever saw her pull out a cook book. I found this recipe on Pinterest and it comes pretty darn close to the real thing.
Orange Julup
serves 2-3
1/2 cup low-fat or skim milk
1/2 cup cold water
2 tbsp sugar or sugar substitute
1 tsp vanilla extract
4-5 ice cubes
6 oz frozen orange juice concentrate (I cut a 12 oz can of frozen orange juice in half and save the other half for your next smoothie)
Place everything in a blender and blend for several minutes until smooth and frothy.
Enjoy it with the ones you love and let it fill your sweet tooth craving on Saturday mornings… or any other time.
humbled by His faithfulness and love,
sarah jane
What a special tribute to Grandmommy. I never lived with my grandmothers, nor did I see them that much, but Granny C could make the best biscuits and gravy around...I would love to be able to make them like she did. I also wished I had of had more energy to do something like this every Saturday morning...by Saturday I was toast. But for a season we had the Saturday breakfast club, along with shirts to wear, and one son at a time got to go to breakfast out with Dad.
ReplyDeleteMy mother loved Orange Julups and we would go and buy them at a little drive through stand...so when I saw this recipe on Pinterest I had to pin it...because it shouts of memories of when I was little and mom would put us in the car for a Orange Julup.
Now I need to share that with my boys who are still at home...now they do get waffles, pancakes and big breakfast often...I seem to not be dead toast at this stage in parenting. LOL
Great post!!!
Kenny has mentioned growing up on big breakfasts... and dinners! You have so much energy now, I know you must have even more when the others were growing up. =)
DeleteThanks for stopping by, it means so much to me.
Good to meet you through Janette! That Julup looks yummy! Blessings to you!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah, my name is Sue, so nice to meet you, This was such a sweet post, as it brought back so many wonderful memories for me, the difference was that we lived with my grandmother, and I can just see her in her kitchen cooking such sweet smelling and delicious foods, she also shared her love of Jesus and along with my parents had a profound affect on my life in getting to know Him. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSue
Hello Sue! It's nice to meet you as well. I read your reply to Janette's post "The Silent Pain." Susan's story is SO inspiring. I have only been through one miscarriage and it was a nightmare and I wanted to give up! I cannot imagine having thirteen and still trying. I too am thrilled she did not listen to man and trusted the Holy Spirit. How precious her two little ones are!
DeleteMy dad reminded me the other night that even the flowers were created to multiply and that it was God's first command. It must be so very dear to His heart. Oh how I would love to see His face every time He creates the miracle of life in someone's womb.
Thank you so much for stopping by!
sarah jane
Oh, I loved this post! I love smoothies! I love memories of my grandparents. When I was a young girl, I would get to spend 2 or 3 weeks in Dallas where both sets of grandparents lived. One grandmother loved to read and kept paper bags FULL of paperbacks in her closet and around her living room. I slept with her and we stayed up as late as we pleased to read novels. My other grandmother had a houseful of kids still and I LOVED spending time with my aunt and uncles. That aunt was the one who took me to her young life meetings as a teenager. I had NO idea that you could have a personal relationship with Jesus like that. I became hungry for God at that point.
ReplyDeleteWhat is it about the older you get, you realize how much you miss your grandmothers? And my grandfathers...It was one grandfather that took the time to show me how to make biscuits. The other one gave me a fascination and deep love for just being outside.
Sarah Jane, I look forward to seeing all that this special journey takes you on! Thanks for sharing your life!
Sue Anne
Hi Sue Anne,
DeleteIt's so nice to meet you!
It is interesting that we don't realize how much we miss our grandparents until we're older. How cool that your aunt took you to young life! My dad also became a Christian through young life. What an amazing organization! And what a beautiful day it is when we realize we can have a personal relationship with Jesus... mine was at a Priscilla Shirer conference.
I never knew either of my grandfathers... but I'm claiming my husbands (Janette's dad) as mine. =) They love sharing their passions and are always so patient to teach us. They are priceless! I'm praying, OH I pray, I will have children that will know their grandfathers.
Thank you so much for stopping by!
What wonderful memories you have of your grandmother. Thank you for sharing her recipe with us. When I think of my grandmother, I think of all things Norwegian with the smell of cardamom. It's a sweet smell and lovely.
ReplyDeleteI love that you carry that memory and hope to carry it on with your own family.
blessings and love,
Debbie