Fresh Starts.......

(No, this isn't any where's near the area of the world where I live.)

Usually by the time I get to the "tail end" of a year...I am SO ready for the "NEW YEAR" to begin.

I usually feel like a "worn out Washer Women" by December 31.
Thankfully I am not feeling as wearisome in my body, mind and soul, this year as of current as I have been at the end of some previous years in my life.

I guess some years are rougher than others I suppose.However, I am one that absolutely loves "NEW BEGINNINGS."
"New starts, changes, moves, conversions."
Call them what you like.
But I love them.

***Here's my "short list" for this Monday morning.***

~Fresh Bedsheets
~Being the FIRST one to walk on fresh fallen snow
~New born babies
~The air after a cleansing rain
~A sprouting plant
~A good cry (not for sadness always, but for good things as well like, proud moments, Hallmark movies, joyfulness, laughing till you cry...and thankfulness!)
~Little hatched chicks
~Using a new washed towel
~Clean hair
~Traveling to a place I've never been before and seeing things for the first time.
~A fresh cup of tea
~Cracking open a brand new book....I love that.
~A fresh toothbrush
~Stars on a crisp and clear night
~A new coat of paint on a wall....smells good...looks good. That's a winner all around really.
~Dew on the grass on summer mornings
~A freshly dusted room (the lemon pledge smells nice too!)
~Early morning sunrises
~Hellos instead of Goodbyes. I really detest "goodbyes"...but I've learned that goodbye isn't forever.
~Beaches with sand that is untouched in the morning
~A new pair of contacts that aren't grimed up yet
~Brand new Christmas socks
~Children that have just had baths
~Hot muffins straight out of the oven
~New money......well....scratch that.......I like old money too don't take me wrong. HA!
But the crispy bills are nice aren't they. That's why we always put them in cards for some reason. It's like it's worth more or something because it's new and not used.

When the year is nearly over.......I never have the attitude or thoughts of......
"oh let's hang on to this year because it was so great......" but rather.....I like to "sweep it out of my front door" like
Mrs. Mouse.

Be gone with you!


Life is like a "Carriage ride" and we had better "gather our skirts up and get in" or we will "miss the JOY in the journey."
It's no fun being "dragged behind a carriage" you know.
Just get in the thing.
And "hang on for dear life if the road gets bumpy."
I am all about "Journeys" anyway.

I love new adventures and new challenges.
Especially the "good ones" of course... we always hope and pray for those don't we?
But sometimes there is sad mixed in with the good.
It all does work out though depending on how you look at it and how you react. Most times.

As the song says...."A spoonful of sugar DOES help the medicine go down" so many times it is how we "perceive" life and how we adjust to the hand we are dealt.

I can tell you though...first hand....that "This lady is Embracing 2009" and looking forward to what wonderful things lie ahead for me and my family and friends.

No matter what war is happening, no matter what financial crisis is going on....no matter who is the many nations leaders.
I know that my family will overcome and press onward.
Come what may. Because we must.

Many men and women prophesy and predict that the days ahead are going to get very "hard and rocky"....and I believe that.
I'm not saying that my family will float along in life unscathed.
I'm sure we will feel "fall out" just as others will.

However......

I am not afraid. I'm also not foolish.
Some things can't be stopped or prevented.

Like "Birth and Death"...."New" years.
And "End Times" of all sorts.

Friends, get yourselves "ready."
2009 is just days and hours away.

Merry Christmas From Our House To Yours....

Whether you be near or far.

We wish you a most Merry Christmas.......

~~Our Children~~
Standing.....Luke and Caleb
Sitting......Gabriel and Ariel

Ready or not.....here it comes.

All over the world.......people are preparing for Christmas.

In Northern Ireland......
(Belfast children from the loyalist Suffolk estate join with their neighbours from the nationalist Lenadoon area in a joint Christmas service on the Stewartstown Road in Belfast.)

Somewhere in the world, Penguins and Dogs are getting dressing up.


Arlington National Cemetary is even decorated.


Now we wait just a few more days in anticipation of the one day that the world marks to "remember" a special birth.


We've prepared many gifts, we've prepared special foods, we've prepared our homes, we've prepared pretty cards and have mailed them off.

But I wonder to myself tonight.....

"Have we prepared our HEARTS?"

I'm working on that.
It really is THE most important preparation that needs to be done.

Psalm 85:10
"Love and faithfulness meet together;
righteousness and peace kiss each other."

How nice it will be to "Kiss the King" one day.

Baking for the Holidays?

The other day I decided to make some little "Christmas cakes."
Let me mention right here.........that I don't like to cook or bake really.
Anyway not like others seem to.

However, one must "eat" in life right? And it is rewarding at times too....so I do it.

This day was one of those "rewarding times" in the cooking department at our house.

My husband has a friend we love dearly at his company that I made a special
"Coffee Cake" for, one Christmas a few years ago as a gift, and he has BEGGED me ever since then to make him another one.

Every time I see that man he is asking me for another cake.
In fact....he asked me last week again. BLAH!

SO I finally broke down and decided to do that for him the other day.

I thought I would "share the journey" with you all.

Here is my prep area...

I use the "mini Bundt pan" for these. The recipe is for a big bundt pan but I just mix it for a full one and then pour half into the mini bundt pan because I think they are cuter for gifts and I get two out of the mixture.

Here is the recipe if you are interested.
Believe me it's super easy or I wouldn't be making it.
And it's very tasty.


~~Jewish Sour Cream Coffee Cake~~
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cups, 150 grams), room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
TOPPPING
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans (you could use mini chocolate chips or whatever other great thing pops into your mind.)
2 Tablespoons cinnamon
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray bundt pan with non-stick spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla.
3. Sift dry ingredients together.
4. Alternate adding dry ingredients and sour cream to the cake batter.
5. In a separate bowl, mix topping ingredients (pecans, brown sugar, cinnamon).
6. Sprinkle 1/4 of the topping into the bundt pan.
7. Spread 1/2 batter into bundt pan, add 1/2 of the topping, and then add remaining batter.
8. Sprinkle rest of topping mixture on top of the batter.
9. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes or until a butter knife or toothpick comes out clean. Once it cools in the pan.....I take a knife and slide it all along the pan sides (carefully as to not scratch up the Teflon coating) to make sure it isn't sticking.

Then I flip it over into a decorative box like this one.


Then I put a little
"Snow on the Mountain".....I like to think of it that way.
But in "bakers terms"....use a little strainer or your sifter and dust some powered sugar over the (make sure it's cooled off enough first) little cake.

Look how cute it is.

Place the lid on the box and add a nice ribbon to finish it off.
This is about as good as it gets baking wise in my house aside from some occasional cookies like these I made for a "Cookie Exchange" I went to with about 25 ladies at Miss Sandi's house recently.
I took these....
"Peanut Butter Cookies with mini Reeses Peanut Butter cups in them "


Miss Priss and I do usually make homemade Fudge for gifts for our neighbors.

My Mom would have a "fit" if she read this because she is and has always been quite the baker and cook all of her life.

Honestly,
I nearly called her to ask her how to measure the flour when it's sifted because I hadn't done it in so long. Ugh.
I was confused by this small, yet important question that I had....
"Does one measure flour before you sift it? OR do you sift it and THEN measure it from the sifted amount??"
I looked it up online instead of calling her. HA!
Terrible.

What kinds of great things do you stir up to eat for the Holidays??
Are you giving them as gifts?

Homemade things, baked or otherwise, really are a "Treat"...
I realize this as I see it happening less and less in our society today.
Sadly.

Christmas Tea With Friends.......

Last week I hosted a small and intimate "Christmas Tea" for some good friends of mine who are also my co-workers.
Two of which had never been to a "tea" before.

This is how things looked BEFORE
I prepared everything.


I set the table with mainly with Blue "Spode 'Winter's Eve'" dishes...and a few odd Spode Teacups, along with a few "Queen's 'Albertine'" Teacups.
Only because I really do not like the cups that match the Spode Winter's Eve.......because they are "MUGS."
I own them but no I wasn't going to do "Mugs" at my Tea Party, "Thank You very much."

The Ladies didn't even notice the difference when I pointed out to them that the China didn't all match. HA!


I used fresh flowers "red carnations and evergreen leaves and branches mixed" on the table and in the main bathroom and on my little kitchen windowsill.

I had my friend Marsha, make all the Tea foods for me....because she is an awesome "Tea Caterer" and her "Cucumber Sandwiches" are positively the BEST in the world.
And that is not an exaggeration at all.
In fact all her tiny dishes are sooooooo good. That's why I hired her. HA!

I had a HARD time taking photos AND being the "Hostess" so I didn't take proper photos of all the food and the courses we had.
Actually I took this one after the fact.

It is our "First course" which consisted of:
~Tiny Ham and Cheese Quiche Bites~
~Cream Cheese-Pineapple-Pecan Roll ups~
~Cucumber Sandwiches with Chives~

Next we had TWO types of Scones.....
~Cranberry, Walnut~
~Peppermint Stick and Mini Chocolate Chip~

For dessert we had....
~Mini Bread Puddings cut in the shapes of "Teapots" with a heavy sauce.

I used a "Mrs. Tea" maker to make all the tea we drank. I found this nearly new one this summer at a thrift store for $9.00!! Much to my GREAT PLEASURE because it's really worth about a million dollars to us tea drinkers.
We will talk more about this Tea Maker later because they are important to us Tea drinkers.

The TWO Tea's I served were:
~Windsor Court~ A rich, and hearty black tea.
~Lady Londonderry~ A lovely fruity, green tea.Both are some of my favorites.

Here is my friend Nona who I love dearly.
I've known Nona for years, and she is the one that recruited me to take on my little job...where we all work.
Miss Priss, even works there now too!

Nona, is one of the SWEETEST and KINDEST people on the planet. You really don't meet many people in life like her and she has suffered alot of heartache and tragedy in life unlike many of us ever will.
She has recently in the past few weeks been diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She will be undergoing a surgery very soon to put in a "Port" to run Chemotherapy in to her body and she will be having some "Lymph Glands" removed.

We are all very sad about this and highly concerned for her. So please join me and the many others that are praying for her. I hate to see her have to go through all of this.
Nona, Joyce, Darleen, Ms. Phillis



Darleen is funny and has been a huge help to me at work, and I like her alot.

Ms. Phillis is very sweet and has a sense of humor like mine and she is a great encourager.
She herself has been through so much this Fall....she lives in my neighborhood and a tree FELL on her house during Hurricane Gustav, crushing her house!! She has had to endure much construction and craziness the past few months.

All of these Ladies are lovely friends and I am honored to have them in my life.
Nona, Joyce, Darleen, Ms. Phillis, in our Christmas Crowns.

Then we did some "non traditional" Tea Party fare.

I had a "Christmas Cracker" at each spot for the Ladies.
I taught them how to "pull" the Cracker with another person and we all had a GREAT time doing this.

Most Americans have never done this and our family loves to do it. HA! HA
Once the Ladies left....I drank some more tea and then took a nap.
Three of my favorite things to do in life.

Have fun, quality time with friends...
Drink Tea
Take Naps

Not always in that order.

SNOW....in Louisiana!

VERY EARLY this morning....."Miss Priss" pranced into our bedroom, ranting and carrying on and woke us up. You would have thought it was Christmas Morning.....she was driving us nuts.

Finally, she forced me out of my warm bed (my husband wouldn't get up)to go see this......

SNOWWWWWWWW right here in Baton Rouge! And LOTS of it.

Our house at 6:00am this morning.



Believe me when I tell you that this is a "Phenom" that doesn't happen in Louisiana very often at all.....

Luke and his Black Lab "Danny O'Shea".....and Luke's Black truck covered in the "White Stuff."


The view from the back end of our driveway.

Front of our house...I don't even have my Christmas garland on my door yet, only my wreath and few other things. Ugh.

"Miss Priss" making a "Snowman" she used mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups for the eyes and part of a carrot for his nose. Creative child that she is.

Yes, the kids are out of school.....we are having a "SNOW DAY!!!"
Yahoo!!!
I am already making us a nice warm "Soup" to eat later.
It's only 8:08am....what am I crazy?

The power is flickering off and on and my computer is acting funny.
That snow really is wet and heavy and falling like mad.

We have firewood ready......but we may need that "hurricane generator" if all else fails.

Odd to think that in September we were fighting that hurricane thing......now 3 months later....we have a lovely "Snow." What is going on?

All I DO know is.....according to my very excited children....
"It's going to be a HAPPY CHRISTMAS" after all...:~) Ha!

AND.....
I'm going BACK to bed. HA! Seriously.

Have a wonderful day, where ever you may be. Snow or no snow.

Cheers!