Every time I think of you—and I think of you often!—I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There’s no end to what has happened in you—it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives.

—1 Corinthians 1:4–6,
The Message

Dedication

I always prayed for my boys to choose girls who would help them get to heaven and have the same lasting love as their dad and me. I will say that they chose wisely. I dedicate this book to my sweet daughters-in-law, who love, honor, and respect my boys.

To Lisa—thank you for your servant heart. You work harder than anyone I know, and no job is beneath you. I love how you adore Alan and treat Phil and me with such respect. Your example of standing strong and being willing to do the hard things in order to grow in the Lord makes us all better people.

To Missy—I knew Jase was looking for a mate who loved the Lord more than anything. Thank you for being exactly who Jase needs, for literally putting a song in my heart with your beautiful voice, and for sharing Jase’s goal of getting your children, first, and then the rest of the world to heaven.

To Korie—Willie never did lack attention from the girls, but a very special girl got his heart for life. Your warm, loving nature makes you a joy to be around. You never act ugly and always treat others with love and respect. Thank you for holding Willie up, for standing beside him in business, and for being the kind of mom every kid dreams of having.

To Jessica—the one who stole the heart of my youngest son, thank you for keeping us all young. Your energetic spirit and love for people challenges us to live life with joy and confidence. You adore Jep as much as I do, and I love you for that.

Thank you all for the gift of your friendship, which no amount of money will buy! I love you all.

Pray for us. We have no doubts about what we’re doing or why, but it’s hard going and we need your prayers. All we care about is living well before God.

—Hebrews 13:20–22,
The Message

Dear Friends

Well, dreams do come true! I’ve always wanted to write a cookbook and open a restaurant. Now one of those dreams is coming true. I’m still waiting on the restaurant, but at my age, I’m good with just cooking for my family. I do want to thank you for buying my cookbook. It means so much to me.

I’ve always loved to cook. I learned while watching my grandmother cook and care for our family. As a child, shelling peas and husking corn were two of my favorite activities—mainly because those were the times when I got to sit and talk to my Nanny. My first memories of food were about getting closer to my family. I believe that’s why I love cooking so much. Cooking is so much more than just putting food together in a way that people will eat it. We know from all the fast-food chains that people will pretty much eat anything prepared for them. But real cooking involves putting time and effort into food preparation for one reason only—because you love the ones you’re going to sit down and eat with.

To this day, when my family comes to visit, it’s likely they will all be in the kitchen surrounding me while I stir a pot or roll out a piecrust. There will be lots of conversation and plenty of laughter. Later we’ll crowd around our kitchen table, say grace, and enjoy the food and fellowship. If your family has gotten away from this habit, I would encourage you to begin today to sit down together for a meal at some point in the day. I know you’re all busy and may not be able to do this every day, but when you can, do it. Your family will be blessed by this simple action.

With this cookbook, I am not saying I am the greatest cook or the most experienced cook, but I am saying I’m a good cook with lots of experience in cooking for family. In this cookbook, you’ll find recipes each of my family members love as well as some old favorites. I hope you enjoy reading it and cooking from it.

May God bless you and your family.

—Miss Kay

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