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Soup’s on at Exaltation of Holy Cross Church in Buttonwood, Hanover Township

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One dead in Hazle Township crash near industrial park

We&#8217;re in full swing in getting ready for church to be held at our house over the weeks ahead.&#8220;So, what is involved with that?&#8221; you might be asking.Usually each family who is practically able, or has enough space in their house, shed or garage for 100 people takes their turn hosting church services for one month. As a preparation for that, we generally just make a goal of doing our deep cleaning for the year just prior to church.I tell Julia that I don&#8217;t have to have everything spic and span, but we need to do many of these chores sometime anyway &#8212; for instance, cleaning out the kitchen cupboards, the closets, or washing walls and window frames. I have felt so blessed with so many people who have helped me with my cleaning during the busy summer season. Not only that, I have had many offers to prepare lunch for our church Sunday. We plan to have newly dug potatoes, baked until soft, mashed on the plate and then topped with hamburger and a mixture of pizza sauce and cheese sauce. Just this forenoon, mom was here and helped me clean knickknacks and various items in my kitchen cupboards like my fondue set that is sitting out.Not only did she come to help clean last evening, she also asked what dish I would be hungry for so she could bring it along for our lunch.It didn&#8217;t take me long to decide. I love her taco rice casserole with the biscuit-type crust on top. So that is just what she did. By 9 a.m. she and my youngest sister, Keturah, 11, were here and ready to help.Julia and Austin never, ever tire of playing with their Aunt Keturah. Today she helped them play &#8220;mailbox,&#8221; which is kind of the hot item around here recently. They take two Styrofoam plates, cutting one in half, then they place the half upside down onto a whole plate and staple the two together. This results in a little pocket just big enough to put little notes, cards, a piece of candy, whatever they want to drop into the others&#8217; boxes. Each box has a name on it and is decorated with stickers.Not only did they play with their mailboxes, they also helped with cleaning and laundry. Keturah is the perfect &#8220;errand girl&#8221; for me, whether it&#8217;s taking out the slop, burning trash, or picking up toys. Her young, energetic ways are constantly saving many steps for me. Her help is especially a blessing for me with my limited energy these days with our little one on its way.So, here I am, my tummy full from mom&#8217;s casserole and cluing you into our life. Mom just went home with the pony cart, and Keturah is here playing with Julia and Austin&#8217;s mailboxes. Several minutes ago I got a &#8220;suspicious&#8221; note in my box, signed &#8220;guess who&#8221; so I have been swapping notes with Keturah trying to get her to admit it is from her.Any time, my sister Anna Faith will be stopping in to pick us up along with several boxes of garage sale items that I want to add to my friend&#8217;s sale. This afternoon, we want to sort and price a bunch of items we no longer need.I admit, garage sales are on my list of favorite activities. Maybe I should even call it a weakness. I love rummaging through items looking for bargains.Anyway, I enjoyed my &#8220;chat&#8221; with you even though it was one sided, although I love hearing from you in the mail.Here&#8217;s our taco rice casserole for you to enjoy. By thy way, I use my own &#8220;homemade Bisquick&#8221; for this recipe, but you can use the store-bought kind.TACO RICE CASSEROLE1 pound hamburger1 medium onion, chopped1/2 package of taco seasoning1 16-ounce chunk tomatoes1 cup rice, uncooked1 cup mayonnaise1 cup sour cream1 cup shredded cheese2 cups Bisquick mix3/4 cup milkFry hamburgers and onions until brown.Add taco seasoning and drained tomatoes.Drain juice and cook the rice in the tomato juice.Add enough water to make 2 1/2 cups.When the rice is soft, mix it with hamburger mixture.Pour into 9 by 13 inch pan.Mix together mayonnaise, sour cream, and cheese.Spread over hamburger mixture.Make a thin batter of Bisquick and milk and pour over top of sour cream mixture.Bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Serves 15.<style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>Gloria YoderThe Amish Cook</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta>READER APPRECIATION BOOK SALE: We are offering a set of just cookbooks. This set would cost $100 from Amazon, but is available to you for a limited time for $49.00 The entire Amish Cook softcover cookbook set is now available to celebrate the column&#8217;s anniversary this summer. This is the last time these books will be offered, first-come, first served. This package does not include fiction books or travel guides, just cookbooks. The titles are: &#8220;Original Amish Cook Cookbook;&#8221; &#8220;The Best of The Amish Cook, Vol 1;&#8221; &#8220;The Best of The Amish Cook, Vol 2;&#8221; &#8220;The Amish Recipe Project;&#8221; and &#8220;The Amish Cook&#8217;s Everything But the Kitchen Sink Book.&#8221; The five books for $49 plus $3 shipping. Send to: Oasis Newsfeatures, PO BOX 157, Middletown, Ohio 45042. Two sets for $80 (includes shipping).</factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Readers with culinary or cultural questions or stories can write Gloria directly at Gloria Yoder, 10568 E. 350th Ave., Flat Rock, IL 62427-2019. To see more on the Amish, go to www.amish365.com.</shirttailMeta></div>

Amish Cook: Getting ready to host and feed the church community for a month