Here are a few more CRAFT ideas for you 

to try when you get in the mood!

1. Tin Star:  cover with different scrapbook papers; put a coat of Modge Podge on it 

2. Frame:  make a pretty bow and bedazzle it up

3. Photo Block:  piece of wood (your choice of size), cover with paper; "spruce" it up with feathers, trim, etc.; add a clip to show off a favorite photo

A Song and a Slice of Sweetness

Regardless of how many times I hear this song, I am over taken with thanksgiving, joy, and praise each and every time!

You Are My King

(Chris Tomlin)

I'm forgiven because you were forsaken
I'm accepted, you were condemned
I'm alive and well
Your spirit is within me
Because you died and rose again

Amazing love how can it be
That you, my king would die for me
Amazing love, I know its true
It's my joy to honor you
Amazing love how can it be?
That you, my king, would die for me
Amazing love, I know its true
Its my joy to honor you
In all I do I honor you

You are my king
You are my king
Jesus, You are my king
Jesus, You are my king

Amazing love, how can it be?
That you, my king, would die for me
Amazing love, I know it's true
Its my joy to honor you
Amazing love, how can it be?
That you, my king would die for me
Amazing love I know it's true
Its my joy to honor you
In all I do I honor you
In all I do honor you.

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Red Velvet Cake

Cake
1 ½ sticks (3/4 c.) butter, softened
1 ½ cups sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 T. red food coloring
2 t. white vinegar
2 ½ cups flour

Frosting
2 bricks (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
2 sticks (1 c.) butter, softened
2 jars (7 or 7 ½ oz each) marshmallow cream

PREPARATION
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Coat two 9 x 2-in. or 8 x 2-in. cake pans with baking spray (nonstick spray with flour).

2. Cake: In a large bowl with mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and vanilla 2 minutes until creamy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until blended. Stir buttermilk, food color and vinegar in a 2-cup measure until well blended. With mixer on low, beat in flour in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk mixture in 2 additions, beating just until combined. Spread 3 cups batter in each prepared pan.

3. Bake 30 to 33 minutes for 9-in. layers, 40 to 43 minutes for 8-in. layers, until cakes pull away from sides of pans and a pick inserted in center of cakes comes out clean. Do not overcook. Cool in pans on a wire rack 5 minutes before removing from pans onto rack to cool completely.

4. Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add marshmallow cream; beat until smooth and fluffy, about 1 minute.

5. To assemble: Place 1 layer on serving plate; spread with 2 cups frosting. Top with remaining layer; frost sides, then top with remaining frosting.

Turkey Tex-Mex Casserole

Now is when everyone tells you how to use the leftover turkey. I saw this one cooked on television this morning. Well, it's right up my alley---mushrooms, cheese, turkey, cheese, tomatoes, cheese.......you get the message. Don't let the length of this post scare you; it looked easy!

Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter
1 pound button mushrooms, wiped clean, stems trimmed and quartered
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 1/2 cups turkey stock or canned, low sodium chicken broth
12 cups tortilla chips
3 to 3 1/2 cups diced roast turkey
2 cups finely chopped onions
1 cup finely chopped bell peppers
2 jalapeno peppers, stem and seeds removed and finely chopped (optional)
8 ounces Pepper Jack cheese, grated
8 ounces Cheddar cheese, grated
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 cup drained and chopped canned tomatoes
One 4-ounce can diced green chilies, drained

Cooking Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Heat the butter in a skillet over high heat until foamy.
Add the mushrooms, ¼ teaspoon of salt, and the black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms release their liquid. Continue to cook until mushrooms are golden brown and all liquid has evaporated, about 6 minutes. Sprinkle the mushrooms with the flour, stir to blend, and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk and stir, scraping the skillet to release any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.
Cook until the mixture begins to thicken. Add 1 ½ cups of the turkey broth, stir, and cook until thick and flavorful, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Place the tortillas in the bottom of a glass 9 x 13-inch casserole and crush with your hands so that the tortillas form a thin layer on the bottom of the dish. Pour the remaining 1 cup of the turkey broth over the tortillas and allow them to soak up the liquid.
Scatter the turkey pieces over the top of the tortilla layer. Spread the chopped onions, bell peppers, and the minced jalapenos evenly over the turkey. Top with half of the grated cheeses.
Sprinkle with the chili powder, cumin, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and the cayenne . Spoon the reserved mushroom mixture evenly over the top of the spices, then top with the tomatoes and green chilies.
Cover with the remainder of the cheeses. Bake uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and the casserole is heated through.

(Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, courtesy Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

"I will always trust in you and in your mercy and shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because He has blessed me so richly." (Psalms 13: 5-6)

A Big "Thank You"

Thena had a giveaway recently, and I won 50 custom cards from Uprinting.com. It was so easy to upload pictures and complete the order. Shipping is usually done within 24 hrs. of the proofing. Pretty easy, huh?

Thanks again, Thena!

"Believe" Sweatshirt

Craft weekend share #1

 I put this on a red sweatshirt to enjoy wearing during the holidays! All you need are some letters, fabric of your choice, sweatshirt, backing, an iron, and a sewing machine.

Give it a whirl!

All That Glitters

Keelie helped Jenna and me with a couple of Christmas things this past week.

I had bought some supplies and then showed her a picture. After a few minutes, WAHLAA! My new large swag was finished. 

She was also sweet to help Jenna out with her tree. One afternoon Keelie, Glory, and I headed down to her apartment. We ordered Chinese food, and then Keelie began her magic. Jenna had everything on hand. So within a couple of hours her beautiful tree was aglow and complete.




I have hooked up to TWOC to share my swag. (Yeah I know it's not really a wreath, but she won't care.)

CRAFT CRAZE!

I left today with Marilyn and a friend for hopefully what will prove to be a very profitable girls’ weekend of crafting. We will be “moving” in with my 24 yr. old nephew at his house in a neighboring state. (He’s a great kid by the way!)

He will not know what hit him when all the crates, boxes, bags, sewing machines, etc. come rolling in the back door. I think he is honestly looking forward to having us around. He knows there will be some free meals involved, too!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Tag!

I wanted to personalize some homemade baked gift packages this year. I decided to do it by creating some name tags.  Just for fun, I also wanted to do it without purchasing anything.

Out came some old Christmas cards from last year, scrapbooking paper, ribbon, a hole punch and a cutter. I began by sorting through the cards and finding some I really wanted to use. I trimmed them  and then selected some coordinating paper.

I will confess now. I actually had to go to the dollar store and buy a glue stick. 

And the finished products...............

Who said projects had to be difficult to be worth it? This was an easy, fun, and inexpensive DIY. 

 I have hooked up to

Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day

Oh my gosh! If you didn't hear this yesterday, November 15,  was "Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day." 

MOST everything in a refrigerator was once a fresh, healthy food (or not), ready for your consumption. It may have been a tasty leftover, intended for later enjoyment. Unfortunately, over the course of weeks or more, things got pushed to the back of the refrigerator and slowly transformed into something impossible to identify.

What's that in the back of  YOUR refrigerator!? Do you really want to know? Don't open it...... the odor may overwhelm you!!! Hold your breath, scrunch your nose if you must, and throw it straight in the trash.

Happy Cleaning!!

P.S. What's the most unusual thing you have in your refrigerator RIGHT NOW? Mine was a wrapped used paint brush! Don't ask.............

REAL FRIEND TEST! 

 This is GOOD...Pass it on!

 A simple friend when visiting acts like a guest.
 A real friend opens your refrigerator and helps herself AND doesn't feel even the least bit weird shutting your Diet Coke drawer with her foot! 

 A simple friend has never seen you cry.
 A real friend's shoulder is soggy from your tears.. 
 
 A simple friend doesn't know your relatives' first names.
 A real friend has their phone numbers in her address book. 
A simple friend brings a gift to your party.
A real friend comes early to help you cook and stays late to help you clean. 
 
A simple friend hates it when you call after they've gone to bed.
A real friend asks you why you took so long to call. 
 
 A simple friend seeks to talk with you about your problems.
 A real friend seeks to help you with your problems. 

 A simple friend wonders about your romantic history.
 A real friend could blackmail you with it! 

 A simple friend thinks the friendship is over when you have an argument.
 A real friend calls you after you had a fight. 
 A simple friend expects you to always be there for them.
 A real friend expects to always be there for you! 

 It keeps us together......our Circle of Friends!

Let Freedom Ring As We Remember! 

11-11-09

Veteran's Day

I am proud both my father and father-in-law served our country. This is my dad standing under the Eiffel Tower in Paris. He served most of his time in France and Germany. My father-in-law was in the Philippines. (I'm searching for a photo of him in uniform.)

I'd love to know if you have a family member who served as well. 

I pray God continues to bless our nation.

Remember our troops and families today as they hold a memorial service at Ft. Hood here in Texas for the fallen soldiers.

Race Weekend

Rick and I have been at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend in the RV.

The weather was absolutely perfect. I enjoyed being with family and friends. Huge meals are always included in the these weekends. We've had a full breakfast every morning that the GUYS cooked. Other meals included brisket, baby-back ribs, Mexican food, and on and on.

Now, I should say I didn't even go to the actual races. I stayed back at camp and caught up on reading these.... 

as well as my ladies bible study material. One of the ladies in the group use to have her own floral shop and decorating business. She was thrilled to give us some pointers on bow making. I think if we had had our Christmas trees out there, she would have done them for us! Don't think I didn't consider the logistics of that for a few minutes! 

Hope you had a great weekend, too.

Banana-Split Cheesecake

Ok, you know me and desserts. Here is the next one I will be trying!

Ingredients

CRUST:
1 cup packaged chocolate cookie crumbs (such as Oreo)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon butter or stick margarine, melted
Cooking spray


FILLING:
3 (8-ounce) blocks fat-free cream cheese, softened
1 (8-ounce) block 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
1 (8-ounce) carton low-fat sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs


TOPPINGS:
1/3 cup canned crushed pineapple in juice, drained
1/3 cup strawberry sundae syrup
1/3 cup chocolate syrup
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
16 maraschino cherries, drained

Preparation
Preheat oven to 325°.
To prepare crust, combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl; toss with a fork until moist. Press into bottom of a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray.
To prepare filling, beat cheeses and sour cream at high speed of a mixer until smooth. Add 1 1/2 cups sugar, banana, flour, and vanilla; beat well. Add eggs, 1 at a time; beat well after each addition.
Pour cheese mixture into prepared pan; bake at 325° for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until almost set. Cheesecake is done when the center barely moves when pan is touched. Remove cheesecake from oven; run a knife around outside edge. Cool cheesecake to room temperature. Cover and chill for at least 8 hours. Top each serving with 1 teaspoon pineapple, 1 teaspoon strawberry syrup, 1 teaspoon chocolate syrup, 3/4 teaspoon pecans, and 1 cherry.

From "Cooking Light" -- seriously!

Harley Davidson Quilt

When my husband sold his Harley bike, he had a whole wardrobe full of HD t-shirts literally from all over the world. I wanted to do something to save just a few of the shirts for him in some "Harley Hog" special meaningful way (whatever that means) and give it to him for Christmas. So I asked him to pick out twelve of his favorite t-shirts that he wanted to keep to remember perhaps certain rides or memories .

I cut the squares off either the front or back of the t-shirt depending on which side I thought would make the best finished 12 X 12 square.

I purchased for little or nothing one black sheet for the backing and some of this cool Harley-colored orange fabric for the borders, sashes, etc. I already had some batting on hand. Then I began to piece it square by square. It was finished off with a machine for durability. 

And here's the finished quilt. We both love it! It goes wherever we travel in the RV.

Always save t-shirts! They have such memories tied to them. And they really do make great quilts. Perhaps I can share some other t-shirt quilts I've done in the future.

I have hooked up to both Keelie and Kimba, so hop on over to both of these!

 Household Chores

Besides making our bed, another chore that Marilyn and I had at home was to help wash and dry the dishes. Marilyn and I took turns. One week I washed, and she dried. The next week we switched. This continued until Mother got a dishwasher. Then we helped load and unload it.  I don’t think I can remember a time when Mother left dirty dishes in the sink.

One side comment........ our kitchen detail was habitually interrupted early in the process each and every time. There was something about washing and drying dishes that ALWAYS sent a message to Marilyn—“I’ve got to go to the bathroom.” And off she would go. It was such a joke!
Living on a farm, we had some other things that we tried to help out with. I say that lightly because sometimes we were more of a hindrance probably than an asset to the task. Gardening was one of those. I think I was guilty of pulling up the wrong things from time to time in our garden. 

I was definitely a “chicken” when it came to going to try to gather eggs from under those things sitting on them! Who wants to stick their hand under a clucking animal?

Yikes…..

Weekend Wonders

Just wanted to share a few of the highlights of our weekend. 

We took Jonah, the RV, and went to the lake for a quick camping trip.

There was a great playground right around the corner of our campsite. 

I love this! Jonah worked on his bike--for real.

Our wonderful view at sunset! 

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Grace Greater Than our Sin

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Refrain:
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin!