Monthly Archives: November 2012

She’s Doing the Happy Dance!

No, it’s not because I’m nipping on the Smirntopf. I’ve met my November 30th deadlines and it makes me footloose and fancy free.

But back to the Smirntopf. If you follow my blog you know that way back in the summer I was inspired by Rosella to try making Rumtopf but I called mine Smirntopf because I used Smirnoff Vodka with the fruit and sugar instead of Rum. Here’s another post about Rumtopf on Rosella’s blog.

This is what it looked like when we added the last bit of fruit, sugar, and vodka and before we stirred and strained it.

Dear and I stirred the Smirntopf and strained our Smirntopf and have a pot of the fruit wondering what we will do with it. After straining the liquid from the fruit I stirred it real good and strained it again through cheesecloth before I filled the containers.

Now I’m wondering who might enjoy a little container of our Smirntopf…

Today is the last day of November and I have some final Grace Challenge thoughts to post.

I’m thankful for the inspiration and encouragement from my blogging friends.

I’m thankful to God that he gave me the words I needed to complete a project.

I’m thankful that we are entering the Christmas season and I’m turning my thoughts to focusing on Jesus during Advent.

When we focus on all we’ve been given it’s easier to give. At our church our pastor said “Grateful people give in response to God’s grace.”

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.
~ 2 Corinthians 8:9

My brother had a great suggestion for continuing the Grace Challenge.

“As you enter the advent season, a season traditionally marked by gift giving (graciousness) make your giving not out of obligation but truly out of grace.  Here are some Grace Challenge encouragements for your gift giving, for your abundance of good deeds:

  1. Make a list of the people you are buying gifts for this Christmas season in your Grace Challenge Notebook.
  2. Pray for them daily; Give thanks for them daily.
  3. With your gift, write a note that expresses the content of your prayer and thanks for the person you have been gracious towards. Use Ephesians 1 and Colossians 1 as examples for your writing and prayer.
  4. Believe that your prayer and thanksgiving is worth more than the monetary value of the gift given. “

Blessings…

Christmas Beginnings…

I’m joining Kathleen at Cuisine Kathleen with my first Christmas table for Let’s Dish.

We even had a full on Christmas dinner at this table the Saturday after Thanksgiving with Josh, Laura and Dan. It’s a long story. The recipe for this Apple Butternut soup will be shared in December on the Mennonite Girls Can Cook blog.

Today I reset the table to my more casual everyday Christmas theme. I hope to share that next week.

More decorations went up today. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at our house…

The Majority…

It was nice having the majority of our children around over the 4 day Thanksgiving Holiday. We are looking forward to seeing Katie and Andrew the day after Christmas for the majority of their trip to the West. They will be in Salt Lake City for 4 days before they continue their flight to Seattle.

I made my first dutch baby the morning after Thanksgiving. I will definitely make it again. This one had blueberries in it. The photo of  our 3 kids above was taken on the same day at our favorite Mexican restaurant. And yes, we ate our way through the 4 days…

All the Christmas containers are down from the attic. Now I need to decide what to put up. We won’t be getting our tree until the weekend of the 8th.

How’s Christmas decorating shaping up at your house?

Giving and Receiving…

We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;

he chastens and hastens His will to make known;

We started with some appetizers. Really? Do you need appetizers at a Thanksgiving meal? Probably not so it’s good not to fuss over them.

The table is something I do like to spend time on. If this is not your thing don’t fuss over it either. The most important thing is having people around your table not what’s on the table.

We generally serve buffet style especially at Thanksgiving because we have way too many dishes to fit on the table and serve family style. When it’s just a family dinner it works fine to put all the dishes right on the table.

Did you notice, too, that there is nothing green on the plate? I gave up making salads for Thanksgiving years ago. There’s just not enough room on the plate for it. I just tell people to have a green smoothie for breakfast on Thanksgiving morning before they head over.

It’s wonderful when you can count on your guests to chip in with part of the meal. Thank you Beth for the desserts and Lana for the potatoes and turkey shaped butter!

We had a wonderful time from Thursday on. I will admit that I was dead Thursday evening. On Friday Lana, Laura and I made one short trip to Country Village in Bothell for a quick run through our 3 favorite stores. Just long enough to get a little shopping out of our systems. We dropped Lana off at home for her to continue her Christmas decorating with her new purchases. Laura and I headed to my house and suggested a meal out at our local Mexican hang out with the guys. They thought that was a great idea and it was nice not to have to cook or warm up another meal.

Because of our cookbook deadlines I made one more meal for my family to test on Saturday night. I’m happy to report it worked out great. All I have left to do is document the recipe for the book. My family might be sad when the recipes are all done and headed off to be edited.

After church today we helped Dan pack up and head back over the mountains. He made it home by 5:00 with clear roads and good weather. After we waved goodbye to Dan we jumped in the car and headed to friends for lunch. That was a nice unexpected treat after all the cooking in my kitchen this Thanksgiving weekend.

A few more days are left in the November Grace Challenge and I’m so grateful to God for family, friends, and food. I’m thankful we can share at our table. And when the dishes are cleared I’m thankful for a dishwasher that scrubs away and a friend that will scrub the items that can’t go in the dishwasher.

I Have a Song That Jesus Gave Me ~ Hymn

I Have a Song That Jesus Gave Me

I have a song that Jesus gave me,
It was sent from Heav’n above;
There never was a sweeter melody,
’Tis the melody of love.

Refrain

In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody with Heaven’s harmony;
In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody of love.

I love the Christ who died on Calv’ry,
For He washed my sins away;
He put within my heart a melody,
And I know it’s there to stay.

Refrain

’Twill be my endless theme in glory,
With the angels I will sing;
’Twill be a song with glorious harmony,
When the courts of Heaven ring.

Refrain

Words: Elton M. Roth, 1924.

HT: Jeremy Leffel Photography

Here and There…

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with Dave, Beth, Jamie, Sarly, Raelynd, BIL Steve, my sister Lana, and our son Dan yesterday in the Pacific Northwest.  Our son Josh and Laura were celebrating with Laura’s family just a few miles away from us. Our daughter Katie called from their celebration with Son-in-law Andrew’s folks in the middle of Florida.

I nabbed this photo off facebook of part of my family enjoying their feast in Dallas, Texas. My sister Kathy’s family drove from Southern California to Texas to spend time with my brother Leonard’s family.

Then I nabbed this photo of my mom and dad enjoying their Thanksgiving feast with my sister Vera’s family in Huntington Beach, California. I really love that my dad has his napkin tucked into his waist. I can almost hear his voice and I know he is praising God and being thankful to Him for his family gathered around that table and scattered all over the U.S.

My brother Tim and SIL Letty joined them. My brother Steve’s family drove from Southern California to Arizona to celebrate with my SIL Kelly’s family. Dear’s brother Terry’s family celebrated in Fullerton, California.

Here there and everywhere we all joined in being thankful to God for all “he did to us” over the years!

Happy Thanksgiving to All in the U.S.A.

Psalm 28:7 ~

The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy
and I will give thanks to him in song.

Господь–крепость моя и щит мой; на Него уповало сердце мое, и Он помог мне, и возрадовалось сердце мое; и я прославлю Его песнью моею.

At our house all the usual suspects will arrive and we will eat traditionally with one or two surprises thrown in.

My 2009 sentiments remain the same for 2012, too. Hope you are all enjoying the many blessings that God has showered our nation with.

There and Back Again…

Last Friday afternoon Dear and I traveled to Chilliwack, B.C. and home again the same evening. Bev and Harv treated 12 of the Mennonite Girls and their husbands to a wonderful evening of delicious food and fellowship filled with lots of laughter.

Most of these photos were taken by Anneliese and Judy. Thank you girls for letting me use them in this collage. Dear and I had several offers to spend the night in Chilliwack but we had to return the same night because of Dear’s work obligations.

The main dish will be featured in our new cookbook. Our meal started with a lovely soup course, followed by a salad course, main course, and dessert of Chocolate Mousse pictured in the collage.

A huge thank you to Bev and Harv for hosting us and providing us with delicious food and opening the door to a night of laughter filled fellowship! We appreciated every minute of our time together!

I’m in preparation mode around here. Got all my meal shopping done yesterday. We might include a special breakfast in our day tomorrow since Thanksgiving dinner will not be until 4:00 P.M. tomorrow. We’re praying our son’s trip across the pass will be uneventful and that he’ll get here without delay on Wednesday night. Don’t be surprised if there is no new activity here for a while…

The Marine Birthday Ball ~ Oorah!

Our daughter and son-in-law attended their first Marine Birthday Ball last Friday in Wilmington, North Carolina. Last year during the ball Andrew was in Afghanistan. We are happy he is home this year to experience the fun celebration with Katie.

Day 19 of the grace challenge I am thankful for our son-in-law and his service to our country and for our daughter who supports him in his service. I am ultimately thankful to God for his protection of them.

My daughter was apologetic for not taking photos of the table scapes at the Ball. She said, “Sorry I missed the tablescapes and the food…tables were alternating red on gold(more mustard) and gold on red, with bows on chairs and napkins in alternating colors table by table. Ha! She knows her mother.

We are on the home stretch for our Thanksgiving Celebrations starting on Thursday. Today I’m making my lists! I know our Canadian neighbors celebrated Thanksgiving over a month ago. Are you preparing for Thanksgiving or are you preparing for Christmas?

Now the Year is Crowned with Blessing ~ Hymn

Now the Year is Crowned with Blessing

Now the year is crowned with blessing
As we gather in the grain;
And, our grateful thanks expressing,
Loud we raise a joyous strain.
Bygone days of toil and sadness
Cannot now our peace destroy,
For the hills are clothed with gladness
And the valleys shout for joy.

Refrain

To the Lord their first-fruits bringing,
All His thankful people come,
To the Father praises singing
For the joy of Harvest-Home.

In the spring the smiling meadows
Donned their robes of living green,
As the sunshine chased the shadows
Swiftly o’er the changing scene;
In the summer time the story
Of a riper hope was told;
Then the rich autumnal glory
Decked the fields in cloth of gold.

Refrain

Shall not we, whose hearts are swelling
With the thought of former days,
Sing a joyous song foretelling
Future gladness, fuller praise?
For the cloud the bow retaineth
With its covenant of peace,
That, as long as earth remaineth,
Harvest time shall never cease.

Refrain

Though the fig tree may not flourish,
Though the vine no fruit may yield,
Though the earth no flocks may nourish
In the fold or in the field,
Still our hearts will trust His power
Who the ravens stoops to feed,
And the hand that clothes each flower
Shall supply our utmost need.

Refrain

Words: Ellen T. Fowler