Friday's Fave Five #22

Welcome again to Friday's Fave Five. Are you ready to take a look at your week and find your Five Favorite things about it. I must admit when I sat down I thought this was going to be really hard. It wasn't the easiest week of my life. But once I started to look back there were five favorite things, albiet mixed up in the chaos, but they were there. So if you'd like to join in, please make a Fave Five post and don't forget to sign on to Mr. Linky! If you're new, details are here. And if you'd like to grab the new button for February, feel free!

So onto my five favorite things from the week:

1. Youth leaders. I am so appreciative of people who feel called and take on youth groups. Bless you, if you are one of them. It is certainly a job I could never do. Getting the Word into our kids, building relationships with them, encouraging relationships within the group, living out the Christian life in front of the kids, being available for them and allowing yourself to have their kind of fun, I'm telling you I totally admire and am so thankful for you.

2. Throat Formula Organic Tea. Apparently now called Throat Coat. I'm telling you this has been a gift this week. My sister gave me this when I last had a really bad sore throat and I wasn't too nuts about the taste, but this week my throat was so sore I didn't care about the taste and I'm telling you, this was so soothing. I now quite enjoy the taste, sorta licoricey and it does the job. So a nice hot mug of this throughout the day is definitely one of my favorite things this week.

3. Birthday Celebrations. More specifically, celebrating my one and only son's 17th. Can it really be he is that old already. He's my homebody. He's quite content being at home, celebrating his birthday with his family and Grandmother's. He's such a good boy! And he'd be totally embarrased to know I just said that.

4. Going downstairs and seeing my "library". I have wanted a bookshelf for years and hubby blessed me on my last birthday with a literal wall of them. I walk into the tv room and just sigh when I see them. This isn't all my books on it yet but I just had to show you. Ignore the the ugly wall behind it and just feast your eyes upon the loveliness of the shelves. My hubby totally doesn't get my love for books and reading or of bookshelves so it was an extra special gift that he actually got me three!

5. And last but definitely not least was talking to Kay on the phone. It's always so good to hear her voice and hear her telling me about her days away at school. And yeah, that I can actually call her for free anytime on my cell phone plan. Yipee for that.

Tell me, what's your favorite things this week? Don't forget to sign Mr. Linky if you done a post. Make sure you use the URL for your specific post and not just your homepage. That will help those of us who like to spread out our reading or can't come until the next day or next week to get to your post. Have a great weekend and happy Fave Friday!

What to do, what to do?

Remember my planters just before Christmas? The ones by the front door and how pretty and Christmasy they looked? No? Well, go look here. It's okay, I'll wait. La lala la laaaa. Oh back. Okay this is what they look like now:

Blech. Boring. Yucky. And I have no idea what to do about it. So I'm throwing it out to you, my dear bloggy friends. Help a girl out and give me some suggestions. Keep in mind that in my area of the world I will not be planting anything of a real live plant or flower nature until the end of May. Oh and it must be cheap frugal.

Wordless Wednesday

In my email box yesterday:

"Winter is almost over here in Canada as we can see the deer wandering around now."

For more Wordless Wednesday go here

The Beast Resides in Casa Living To Tell

I'm an idiot. I don't know why it's so hard to say goodbye to this thing. Linda calls it the Beast, with a capital B. I just try to ignore it. It came to reside with great gusto in our home a couple of years ago. It's done it's part as part of the household maybe a dozen times at the most. For the most part it's a space hog, tripping the most unsuspecting person trying to get by it. And if not very careful, the most naieve of the unsuspecting walker byer (is that a word?) might get clobbered by one of it's long arms.

Great expectations were put upon this "beast" when he came to live here. But alas, he couldn't live up to them. So come this month both hubby and I have been in a mood to get rid of "stuff". The overwhelming, unused, useless cluttery stuff that is just "there". And the beast fell under this category.

So why is my stomach in a knot? Why do I have these panicky feelings of seeing that thing go out the door? Even the thought of the cash in hand is not making me feel better. Others would scoff at such crazy feelings. Has the beast become such a part of the decor that I've become attached? Have I developed an affectionate feeling of familiarity as I trip over it's feet one more time? Or is it because it is a glaring symbol to the buyer that I was a get in shape failure, that my extra poundage is still hanging on to my back side? That my great plans of continueing on with an exercise routine outside of the gym have crumbled in heap at the feet of my scale? Sigh.

So, the treadmill went out the door last week as did the Bow Flex. And what of the beast? It went too. It went nicely into the corner of the tv room downstairs. Yes, it still resides here. I can no longer ignore him. Now that it's two buddies of torture are gone there is much more room for him and he is much comfier. I have talked myself into getting on it for short bursts throughout the day. 'Cause a few short bursts are better than doing nothin' at all. Right? RIGHT?! Sigh. I'll let you know how this great plan goes or if the beast is yet to see it's eviction in the coming months. Who invented exercise anyway?

My Ugly Mug

Linda at 2nd Cup of Coffee is having an Ugly Mug contest today. Basically you need to bare your cupboard's soul and find the ugliest mug you own and show us all, no less. The picture must have you with the ugly mug to show that you really do own it. Now up for grabs is a $15 Starbucks card. And well, we all know, how I love me some Starbucks! So as a result this whole endeavor has turned me into a searching maniac. My family thinks I have definitely lost it. My mind that is, not the mug. I have not only dug through to the back of my cupboards, but down in the black hole of a storage room that I have where all things ugly go until I have the guts to get rid of them. Add to that a college student who moved away last September and cleaned me out and nary an ugly mug was to be found. All my uglies went with her as the oldest and first to move away. That's the privelage you have of being the first, I guess. You get to take all the uglies with you to your new home.


(Oops, guess I seriously missed on that picture.)

I seriously even went to the second hand store to find "ugly" but then was overcome with guilt that it actually wasn't my mug, and well, my frugal side won out and I didn't want to spend the bucks unless I knew it would win for sure. So back to the hunt at home, and this is what I finally decided on. Looks like a plain white mug.

But oh, no, upon closer inspection it is a picture mug. Of two out of three of the cutest kids on the planet. It was a Father's Day gift for their dear ole Dad years and years ago. But the picture people failed to tell us it was not dishwasher safe. So it faded into oblivion. And I haven't had the heart to throw the thing away. Just call me a sentimental fool. I mean who can throw a mug out with these two cute mugs on it:


Or this sweet message on it:

Now it pretends to decorate and tries to fool us into thinking it is still useful by holding our pens on the computer desk. Hey, I never said I was a decorating affiacondo either.
While it may not even be considered ugly, faded and sad but not ugly, please do me a favor and click over to Linda's and cast me a vote, would you? If for nothing else, but out of sympathy for it being -23* C, that's -11*F people and I really need something warm to drink. I even promise I'll share it with the daddy who actually owns this mug.

Friday's Fave Five #21

It's Friiiiiiday! Welcome, welcome. Time to look back on the week and find your five favorite things. And hopefully Mr. Linky will behave himself this week and not be playing hide and seek with us! If you've done a post with your fave five from the week please sign on so that we can come by and read. If you're new the details are here.

So after a really busy week, my favorite five things that I chose, in no particular order, were, drumroll please:

1. Burt's Bee's Lip Balm with Pomegranite

My lips are dry, dry, dry with this crazy winter weather. I bought this for the first time and now my lips feels so much better. And it smells yummy. And bonus: it doesn't leave my lips feeling like they have an inch of wax on them.

2. The good old binky, soother, pacifier, soosoo or whatever else you choose to call this wonderful little item. I'm telling ya when all three of the little ones who still use one of these in dayhome get going these come in mighty handy and bring blessed relief, both to baby and to my ears. LOL. They truly are defined well here:

3. Psalm 91. We've been taking a look at this Psalm in our Ladies Bible Study Group. What comfort it's been bringing to the group of ladies for various reasons. No matter what issue or fear we have, we are learning that God is faithful and our protector, our refuge and our fortress and we can hide ourselves in Him if we love Him. Go here and read it for yourself and allow it to bring you hope and comfort especially in these nerve wracking times.

4. My hubby. I've just been appreciating him this week and noticing all the little things he does around the house. From painting (of which he is doing the kitchen cupboards and bathroom right now), to fixing things, to being the computer man of the house, to running errands, to cleaning the pots every day, he really does do an awful lot around our home. Thanks, Sweetie! I don't say it enough.

5. This post by my friend Shalee cracked me right up! Totally what was needed at the perfect time. Thanks Shalee!

So what were your favorite things from your week. Some times it's easy to find them, sometimes not so much, but always a blessing once you start looking for them. If you've done a post please sign on!

Also, before I go I just want to mention my friend Linda at 2nd Cup of Coffee is having this crazy Mug Off contest. Up for grabs is a Starbucks gift card! Click on the Ugly Pirate Mug in my sidebar to get the details. Do we dare show our Ugly Mugs, so to speak, over at her place on Monday? For a Starbucks card? You bet your mug!

Now don't forget to sign Mr. Linky with your fave five!

After a week of beautiful, sunny, warm weather it is again colder and snowing outside. It's proving to be a long winter. There was so much snow in the backyard that even with the chinooks and warm days it still didn't melt. It basically compacted into a moonscape type surface that is bumpy, icy, and slippery. So even though it's been nice we haven't been outside due to the danger for little ones. And now it looks like more days of cabin fever. Sigh.

With the gloomy weather comes the urge to bake. The other day I delved into the frozen bag of brown bananas in the freezer and made a double batch of yummy banana oatmeal choc chip muffins. The house smelt wonderful for hours. And today I think I'll make myself a treat of those wonderful Cranberry Hazelnut Biscotti that I made as gifts at Christmas time. It's so easy and so yummy. And I promised you the recipe so here it is.

SUSANNE'S CRANBERRY HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

-3/4 cup butter or margarine

-1 cup white sugar

-2 eggs

-1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

-2 1/2 cups flour

-1 tsp. cinnamon

-3/4 tsp. baking powder

-1/2 tsp. salt

-1 cup hazelnuts (I used whole)

-3/4 cup craisins

Preheat oven to 350*F (175*C). Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and beat. In another bowl, either sift or stir together flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Carefully mix into egg mixture. Stir in hazelnut and craisins.

Divide dough onto the two cookie sheets. Flour hands and shape into two equal logs about 12 inches long and 1/2 inch thick.

Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until edges are golden and center is firm. Remove and cool on pans until cool enough to handle. Using a serrated knife, cut into 1/2 thick diagnal slices. Return the slices to the baking sheet.

Bake for an additonal 10 minutes, turning over once. Cool completely. Cookies may be drizzled with a glaze of icing sugar, milk and cinnamon at this point if desired. Store at room temperature in an airtight container.

Mmmmm. Dip away!

A Book Blurb

Before Christmas, I recieved this book for review and in the busyness and craziness of the time of year, I put it on my dresser and promptly forgot about. In the big dresser clean up of 2009, much to my horror, guess what I found. And so all that to say, I haven't actually read it yet myself. But here's what the publisher has sent to descibe the book:


The Book Blurb:

The last few decades have produced some dramatic changes in the national discourse about all things sexual. With elementary school children being introduced to “family diversity” curriculum, reports of promiscuity in homes for the aged, the raging debate over gay marriage, and the mainstreaming of pornography through advertising and entertainment, there seems to be virtually no part of the culture that is not dealing with sexuality in one way or another—and often with significant controversy. In this age of moral relativism, the politically correct opinion states that what happens between consenting adults is nobody’s business but theirs. After all, in the end, it’s just sex, right?

What do the mainstreaming of pornography, the homosexual agenda, and the philosophy of sexual liberation have in common? Implicit in each is an attack on the institution of heterosexual marriage. According to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, when the traditional plan for marriage is attacked, an entire civilization may pay the price. Dr. Mohler’s latest book, Desire and Deceit: The Real Cost of the New Sexual Tolerance, examines many of today’s most controversial and troubling issues concerning sexuality.
“Today, we face a cultural crisis that actually threatens to reverse civilization and to embrace barbarism,” Dr. Mohler states. “Civilization is based upon order, respect, habit, custom, and institution—all of which are rejected outright by the age of moral relativism and the lack of sexual restraint. Can civilization survive under these circumstances? I would have to argue that it cannot. There is no example in the history of humankind of a civilization enduring for long under these conditions.”

Dr. Mohler has been described by Time.com as the “reigning intellectual of the evangelical movement in the U.S.” Desire and Deceit exemplifies his reputation for academic excellence and uncompromising moral integrity. In assessing the current sexual culture in America, Mohler demonstrates a remarkable breadth of knowledge, citing a diverse group of authors ranging from Christian author Joshua Harris and J.R.R. Tolkien to Sigmund Freud, Margaret Mead, Alfred Kinsey, and some of the lesser known philosophers who have profoundly shaped the American sexual landscape.

The book paints an accurate and alarming picture of a culture that seeks to drown out any voice declaring a message of morality, biblical truth, or any kind of sexual restraint—and that should motivate readers to action. “Let us see this trend toward sexual anarchy answered with true resolve,” Dr. Mohler states. “Let us mount a movement, not consisting so much of placards, billboards, and advertising, but of couples and families, men and women who will not bend, will not bow, and will not surrender to the culture.”

If you're are interested in reading more the book is available at Amazon here.

Wordless Wednesday

Just a quick "dog" nap.

For more Wordless Wednesday go here.

Oh My Pondering Thoughts

Mulling: a verb from the word mullen which means to grind up or mix thoroughly. Mulling: to think about slowly and carefully; to ponder.

Do you ever mull? I mull. And I seem to go in seasons of mulling. This is a mulling season for me. Thoughts and ideas and situations just hanging out in my brain. Going round and round. To give you an example of the things that bumping around my brain this morning vying for priority:

-why is it I am never hungry for breakfast except when a church wide fast is called and then I wake up starving the first morning?

-how on earth can a big fat worm get into a red pepper and not leave evidence of entry anywhere?
-why is it hair stylists always rave about my hair but I can never get it to do what I want?
-why oh why didn't I get my roots done before I got hi-lights?

-how does Celine Dion walk in those heels day in and day out?

-does one's feet permanently "freeze" in high heel position if stilletos are worn all the time?

-does melting ice cream and drinking it count as liquids in a fast?

-why is it a 5 year old furnace gives us more headaches than the ancient one we had before?

-why am I waking up with songs running through my head every single morning lately when that's never happened to me before?

-how can my hand towel disappear off it's hook and not one person in the family know where it is?

-why is it the kids these days seem to mega amounts of days off from school such as I only dreamed of when I was a kid?

Now if I take the definition of mulling and grind and mix thoroughly these thoughts it truly becomes scary! Just imagine this running through your mind:

-how on earth, didn't I get my roots, in those high heels?

-can a big fat worm, day in and day out, count as liquids ?

-I can never get, into a red pepper, and know where it is.

-if stilleto's are worn, running through my head, a church wide fast is called.

See what I mean? Oh my aching brain!

Church wide fasts are usually very timely for me. A time to purposefully focus my thoughts. Focus them not on the silliness and mundane and everyday, but onto the steadfast word of God. Onto the unchanging, unshifting, rock solid Word of the Living God. Mulling on the Word of God is what I should be doing.

Is it any wonder that God calls us to fast in His word? He made us and knows us in and out and how our humanness causes us to focus on all the different distractions that swirl around us each and every day. Fasting and purposefully setting that time aside to seek God through prayer and through His word, puts our thoughts in line with His. As we pray and ponder/mull over His Word, it releases us from confusion and puts our priorities straight in line with His. It humbles us in prayer as it breaks hardness of heart and bondages of sinful habits. As we set ourselves and our wants and cravings aside, and turn to the Lord, seeking Him we look for His handiwork in our lives.

May the cry of my heart be like David's when he wrote Psalm 119 (which is all about the Word of God) and more specifically verses 9 - 16:

"I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.
I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
Praise be to you, O Lord; teach me your decrees.
With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth.
I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word."

Friday's Fave Five #20

Hello and welcome. Another Friday's Fave Five is underway and I'm so glad you joined us. If you've visited but never jumped on board, why don't you make this the week you join in. We'd love for you to post your Fave Five from the week and let us come and visit you. Details are here. If you do a post on your Fave Five don't forget to sign on to Mr. Linky so that we can come visit you!

This has been a very hectic week for me. A new babe starting in dayhome always makes for a more stressful time so I'm very thankful to be able to look back and take note of some favorite things from the week.

1. Friday's Fave Five. I have to admit, this is one of my favorite things in my week. I find it relaxing and fun to visit all of you and read all your favorites. I'm also finding this is a really good discipline for me to take note of favorite things out of my day so that I can list them here.

2. Chinook winds. For those not familiar with them, they are a warm wind that comes over the mountains. Being that we were in a big deep freeze for basically the month of December and up until last week, it was very welcome. I love winter but honestly this really hit hard. We had more snow and deeply cold weather and wind chills than I can ever remember for December and those warm winds started up a couple days ago and we're looking at temps of 7*C (44*F) and sunshine and a huge melt to help get rid of all that snow.

3. Quiet times for me. LOL. Once all the dayhome kids go home there is a very small window where I can just sit and be before I have to jump up and get supper going. I enjoy just sitting with my girl or reading a few pages and catching my breath. A short time, but very rejuvenating.

4. A good book. I have been enjoying several good books lately. I love how they take me to another world and just let me drift away into a character's life. Books are like gold to me.

5. Packing books. Not away, but this week I was able to start packing my books into the new "library" my hubby bought me for my birthday. Okay they are just 3 bookshelves put together, but they were my biggest desire for years and years and I finally had the pleasure of starting to pack my precious books onto them. An absolute pleasure for me. Thank you Hubby!

Have you some favorite things from the week? Let us know and come and enjoy them with you.

*UPDATE: I'm not sure what is happening with Mr. Linky, he seems to be wanting to play hide and seek today and has disappeared off this page. To access everyone's post I imagine we can just go to comments and click on your names to get to your home pages and we'll find it from there. If you've just arrived you can leave your URL in your comment. Hopefully Mr. Linky will find himself soon. I'll add the new entries as I can.

Now Some Housekeeping Duties, Literally.

The Christmas tree comes down, the nativity gets packed away, the stockings all rolled up for another year. And out come the cleaning products. So when a huge box arrived just before Christmas full of Proctor and Gamble products they were put to good use this month. I would have taken a picture but there is something about a huge box arriving at the door that makes even teenagers over eager tearing it apart before mother can run to get the camera.

But I was excited. Just look at what arrived:

-Swiffer Dust & Shine furniture spray

-Swiffer WetJet

- Febreze Air Effects for the home

-Febreze Candles with advanced odor-eliminating core

-Febreze Fabric Refresher for fabrics, carpets and air

-Febreze NOTICEables

-Mr. Clean Disinfecting Wipes with Febreze Freshness

-Mr. Clean Magic Eraser with Febreze Fresh scent

-Ultra Dawn,

-Dawn PLUS with Power Scrubbers

Barb, did you notice all the products with the word Febreeze in them? Be still my heart. I'm becoming as much a Febreeze fan as Barb, but I must say I haven't quite tried it on the dog yet, Barb. LOL.

Now having a dayhome with six kids, you'd think I would have discovered the Swiffer Wet Mop by now. But this was my first try. Now I'm thinking, what on earth was I waiting for? How easy was this to use to clean up my kitchen floor after a busy day with all those kidlets. Floor cleaning will never be the same in my house again.

And can I say the Dawn for dishes is wonderful, even hubby commented on how well it worked. Yes, my hubby helps with the pots and pans. Aren't you all jealous? He's a good guy!

I've been a cleaning fiend this month and thanks P&G for the gift basket of great products to help me out and make the house smell good. Now if you just had some tips to make the aforementioned teens excited to use these products on their rooms!

Wordless Wednesday

What are friends for except to share some good chocolate smelling mud with?

For more Wordless Wednesday visit here.

The Big Shake Up

I have been kept hopping last week and this one and probable the next while to come. A new 1 year old babe has joined the dayhome crew and he is one busy little fellow. Not to mention it does take them a little bit to get used to being out of the routine that they have known all their little lives. Sometimes I wonder what these little ones think when not only is their routine changed but they have all these new faces surrounding them that they have never seen before with mom or dad nowhere in sight. It must be quite the thing for them. The little guy is doing good, though, all things considered. It's more me trying to figure out his needs but we'll get on the same page soon. Albiet the blogging may get a little sporadic but I hope not. I need you big people to "talk" with! :v)

So after an extremely exhausting day yesterday, in which I could not get near the computer, I still had to come up with an easy supper as I still had an interview with parents right afterwards. Thank goodness for Barb and her Potato-Ham Bake recipe she posted here. As it turned out, I had read that and put some leftover ham away from our New Year's ham in anticipation of making this recipe. But I must say, as is the usual case with me, I had to do some change ups because I cannot get my act together with having all the right ingrediants. I don't know what is up with me and that. I think I have all the right stuff but then I go to make it and guess what? I don't. Which makes for interesting times in the kitchen.

So yesterday, in spite of making a grocery store run to get the asparagus, I still didn't get it right. I was going off the top of my head instead of using a list. And Barb, I'm so sorry I changed it up so much, but in spite of all that it was absolutely delish! I blame it all on James Barber,the Urban Peasant, who's cooking show I used to watch all the time, who gave me my first love for cooking, and who's mantra was "If you don't have it on hand, use what you have!" It's all his fault!

Barb, you might want to put your fingers in your ears, so to speak, or cover your eyes at this point, so that you don't know just how much I shook up your wonderful recipe. But here's what I did. I didn't have Yukon Gold potatoes so I used red. I didn't have onion chive cream cheese so I used a brick of regular cream cheese and added about 1/4 - 1/3 cup more milk to it than the recipe called for as it's stiffer than the cream cheese in a tub. I took a good couple of tablespoons of the cream cheese and ran it through my handy dandy little 1 cup processor with 2 green onions, white and green parts, until the onion was finely chopped. Then added it to the rest of the cream cheese in the pot. I didn't have tarragon, so I googled it (I love that google!) to look for a substitute and used marjoram instead. And then on top of it all, I realized I sent my unopened bottle of parmesan with the college girl and I didn't have that either. So I finely grated some mozarella I had on hand. I used a little more as it's a milder flavor.

I'm surprised I didn't have to change up the pepper, for heaven's sakes. LOL. But in spite of all that, it was absolutely delicious! Everything blended together in flavor for a very easy, family pleasing dinner. Which tells me Barb, that you're recipe is the best as it lends it easily to changes and still tastes great!

Here's hubby, son's and my dish of wonderfulness.

And oh my goodness, Barb, I even changed up the ham, with some leftover chicken for youngest daughter who won't eat pork or beef. And girlie loved it!

So I guess all I really didn't change was the asparagus and the pepper. Oh please don't let a lightning bolt hit me. But I would have made James Barber proud! :v}

For the real recipe, go visit Barb, you won't be sorry and you'll have another easy go to dinner for those busy days.

Friday's Fave Five #19

Hello and welcome! I'm so glad to have you here to join me in Fave Five. If you're new, take a moment and click over here for details.

I'm so glad for Fave Five this week. It's been so hectic with a new baby starting in dayhome and something going on every single night. I've not slowed down for a minute all week, but this allowed me to take the time to look at those little things that made me smile.

1. Digital picture frames. Oh how I have fallen in love with these. My hubby got me one for Christmas and we finally got it up and running this week. And do I ever enjoy it. My fireplace always looked so cluttered with all the pictures and frames up there and now it's one frame but unlimited pictures.

2. Candles. I've really been enjoying all the various scented candles that people, including my Tia, gave me for Christmas. Everything from Christmas Wreath scent, Apples and Cinnamon and Midnight Pomegranate (one of my favorite scents from Bath and Body Works). Yum. So nice. And yes, I'm very careful when burning candles, making sure to put them out if I start to feel sleepy! :v)

3. Warm socks. I love my nice warm toasty socks. Especially this last few weeks. We've been in a deep freeze with tons of snow. I was especially happy to have them on my feet when we had to dig my sister's car out of getting stuck in the snow. The rest of me was a frozen ice cube but my toes were toasty and fine.

4. Going to my ladies study group. My favorite thing from this week was meeting with these ladies this week. We are a small group with very varied personalities and backgrounds but we are there for each other and it is an open and honest group. It really lifts me meeting every couple of weeks to study God's Word and get support from a great group of women.

5. Soap. I never, ever use bar soap but was given a couple gifts of fine triple milled bar soap for Christmas and I must say I'm developing a new love for finely milled, scented soaps. So soft and luscious scents such as Cherry Blossom, Lotus Mint, Lavender Musk, Vanilla Tangerine, and Black Cassis.

So what were your favorite things from the week? Let us know. I love to read them and leave Friday's Fave Five feeling very uplifted. If you've done a post, sign on to Mr. Linky and we'll come and visit!

See these?My favorite apples. I made a promise to myself that this year I was going to make healthier snack choices. And it dawned on me that the reason I didn't eat apples was because I was always buying everyone else's favorites, but never my own. So I splurged and bought a bag. Just for me.

Don't they look mouthwatering?

I figured if I put a bowl of these in the fridge, washed and ready for eating...

And they were right in my face when I opened the fridge door I would be less likely to reach for these instead...

Mmmm, but then again..... Chocolate and apples go really nice together, don't they?

Don't Know What To Do With Ham Bone?

Last night I was going to make Barb's Ham and Potato Bake with the left over ham from New Years, but realized I forgot to buy the asparagus for it. After cutting into the bite sized chunks the required amount for the recipe and freezing it until the next grocery shopping trip, I still had this wonderful ham bone with lots of meat left on it. What to do, what to do? Then I remembered this wonderful recipe I had for a easy, delicious ham soup. It called for dry northern beans but I used what I had on hand: two cans of Navy Beans. And it worked wonderfully. Served with a nice hearty bread, I had focaccia on hand, it makes a tasty, filling dinner.

HAM BONE SOUP

-1 ham bone with some meat still left on it

-1 or 2 Tbsp. oil

-1 large onion, chopped

-2 large carrots, chopped into small bite sized chunks

-2 large stalks celery, diced into small bite sized pieces

-1 cup of tomato sauce

-8 cups of water

-2 large cans navy beans

-1 Tbsp. or 2 packets of instant beef boullion

-1 tsp. salt (optional)

-1/2 tsp. pepper

-1 clove garlic, crushed

-2 cups of mashed potatoes

Heat oil in a dutch oven, when hot add the chopped onions and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the diced carrots and celery, and saute a few minutes more. Carefully pour in the water and tomato sauce. Add ham bone, bouillion salt, pepper and garlic. Pour beans into a colander and give it quick rinse, drain and add to pot. Bring to gentle boil and then simmer softly for 45 minutes.

Remove ham bone from the pot carefully and put on plate or bowl. Add the mashed potatoes and stir until smooth. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from the bone, cut into bite sized chunks and re-add into the soup.

Serve with a hearty bread.

It's All About the Nog

One never knows where a conversation will go when talking to pre-schooler's. It all starts with a simple question and then takes turns that just make you want to spew your mouth full of coffee in laughter. Case in point:

On New Year's Eve Day, to help celebrate the occasion, I offered the dayhome kidlets egg nog with their lunch instead of usual milk. A few took me up on it and the following conversation ensued all started with the simple question:

"How come egg nog tastes so good?" inquired one of the kids.

"Because it's made with good stuff like milk, eggs and sugar," says me, the wise one.

To add to my wisdom another little guy pipes up: "And it has the nog of an egg!".

Okay then. Must be the secret ingrediant I never knew about. Not to be outdone, the first little commenter so sweetly and seriously says: "I've never tasted egg juice before."

Exit Susanne who has to wipe up coffee she has snorted through her nose in laughter.

The Simple Woman's Daybook ~ Jan 5/09

Outside my window...it's is a fairly clear day but oh, so windy! After 3 or 4 weeks of being in the deep freeze this week is predicted to be quite nice just hovering around the freezing mark.

I am hearing...the heater running, the kids playing and the wind howling.

I am thinking...of all the things I want to get to to get some order back into the house. There's vacuuming to be done, dusting calling my name, dayhome toys to re-organize. I want to get my bedroom straightened out once and for all (hopefully), Christmas cards need to be taken down. I still need to get the 2009 calendar up on the wall. I know, I'm a tad behind.

I am thankful for...a fresh new year. There is something about just the thought of a fresh start, new plans, new goals. Of course because of Jesus, we always have a fresh start, each and every day, but you there is something about getting the house back to normal after holidays and making new plans for the coming months.

I am wearing...sigh, the same old, same old. I know I've listed this one before. Purple fooler top, black jeans, white sport socks. This question might be getting skipped as I think you can only read about my very limited wardrobe so many times before you start dozing off.

I am hoping...that the new babe starting in dayhome this week has a smooth transition.

From the dayhome...snowman crafts, starting the letter "D" this week.

From the kitchen...bbq beef sandwiches, Potato Ham Bake, Hamburger Soup, Paprika Potatoes, Citrus Broiled Salmon Filets.

I am reading...Between Sundays by Karen Kingsbury, Only Nuns Can Change Habits Overnight by Karen Scalf Lineman, The Love Dare by Stephen & Alex Kendrick. By the way, FamilyLife has started a Love Dare Challenge to help make your marriage better. Each day they will post or send in your email a different Love Dare to do that day. They'll send one a day until it wraps up with a date with your spouse on Valentine's Day. If you'd like more info on this wonderful challenge you can go here. Hurry, it started today.

I am creating...routine back into my days.

Around the house...my nice new bookshelves are up so now I can start packing my books on. Yipee!

One of my favorite things...the settling back into routine after the busyness of a holiday.

A few plans for the rest of the week...leading ladies study group tonight, meeting with youth leadership tomorrow, violin lessons for Tia start back up this week and a trip to the library sometime.

A picture thought I am sharing with you...




The Cranberry Hazelnut Biscotti I made for Christmas gifts along with a bottle of flavored coffee syrup was a smash hit. And super, super easy. I'll share the recipe sometime this month. It's a great gift anytime of year. Or to take to a ladies study group. Hmmm. Maybe I'll make another batch for tonight!

The First Winner of the Year Is...

Congratulations to Lori Anne.

A copy of "Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight" will be on it's way to you as soon as you contact me. Please do so by the end of this week or I will have to draw again. Thanks so much to all who entered. It was really nice to see some new names and faces in the comments. I wish I had a copy for everyone. If you are still interested in the book and would like to purchase a copy it is available here at Amazon.

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7

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Go here for a New Years book giveaway!

Friday's Fave Five # 18

Happy New Year everybody and welcome back to Friday's Fave Five. If you're new, we're so glad you joined us! You can go here for details. Don't forget to sign on to Mr. Linky if you've done a post on your fave things from the week!

So to start the first Fave Five of 2009 it's going to be:

1. A quiet New Year's Day spent lazing around the house and just reading and blogging. I love the Christmas season but boy oh boy, was I looking forward to New Year's Day where I could just be. And that's exactly how it went. Stayed in my jammies until 11 a.m. and made a yummy relaxed brunch of berries pancakes and bacon. Then curled up with coffee and my laptop and book. I totally ignored the Christmas decorations screaming at me to put them away and just relaxed. It was much needed and I'm totally refreshed and ready to do all the post Christmas de-decorating and cleaning now.

2. Christmas and holiday blends of coffees. I actually recieved three different kinds for Christmas gifts so it was fun trying out the different kinds of coffees over the week. My favorite was the Starbucks Christmas Blend. Unfortunately, it's all gone now. Oh, well, there's always next year. :v)

3. Appetizers for supper a couple times this week. We recieved a couple of really large, really nice food baskets as gifts and it's been fun just noshing out on all the specialty foods that were in them that we normally wouldn't buy. Wonderful stuff like sausages, cheeses, olives, crackers, pates and spreads. Not something we do all the time, but fun once in awhile.

4. My birthday was just a wonderful day. Even though I worked, it was very relaxed. Hubby worked on getting my bookshelves up and I can hardly wait to get my books into my very own "library". Then we enjoyed a lovely dinner out at a fancy, schmancy steak restaurant in town, one that overlooks the whole city. So nice. I would have taken a picture of my dinner but my family was aghast that I would even though I told them any good little blogger worth their weight in posts would put up a picture of what they ate for dinner. They didn't buy it. Alas, you'll just have to use your imagination and picture appetizers of mushroom caps stuffed with cream cheese, shrimp and crab, a dinner of New York Strip Loin with wine sauteed mushroom, stuffed potato and a roasted veggie assortment of brocolli, acorn squash and carrots on a white plate and dessert of 3 layer chocolate cake (which we all shared).

5. And saving the best for last was spending time with my beautiful girl, Kay. She spent lots of time at home over the last week, just hanging out with us. I really appreciated that as I know her friends were really pulling on her to do things. It was so nice just to sit and watch Amazing Race and parts of So You Think You Can Dance with her which is something we did together before she left for school. She doesn't have tv so I recorded the season for her and she did a marathon of it. I didn't sit through the whole thing but was able to join her for a lot of it. We read together, chatted, and just spent lots of time. It was so nice to have her here to help celebrate my birthday. It was again very hard to say goodbye when she had to back, so now I'm counting the days to Easter but I think I'll try to talk hubby into a little road trip before then. :v)

So do you have favorites from your last week? Do up a post and let us know. It's so refreshing to read all the good things about our days.

To Give You a Hand With All Those New Years Goals

What a better way to start off the New Year than with a book giveaway! And what a better book to give away than one that hits on what we all think about on New Years. Changing things we don't like in our lives. This book gives you actions you can apply to any thing you want to change in your life. And it recognizes the fact it doesn't happen overnight.



Summary:
Every woman longs for change in some area of her life. Unfortunately, fear, fatigue, adversity, heartbreak, past failures, and even the choices of other people get in the way and make lasting change seem out of reach. Having been there herself, Karen Linamen knows exactly how to take readers from where they are to where they want to be.


In Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight, she examines 52 powerful actions readers can apply to any change they long to embrace. Her insights apply to career, finances, personal health and fitness, relationships, faith—in fact, every facet of a woman’s life.
Blending laugh-out-loud humor and sage advice, Linamen shows readers the link between dissatisfaction and transformation, how to remodel habits, the little-known truth about procrastination, how to generate the energy they need to pursue the life they desire, how to benefit from options and resources they never dreamed they had, and much, much more!



Author Bio:
Karen Linamen is a popular speaker and the celebrated author of ten books for women, including Due to Rising Energy Costs the Light at the End of the Tunnel Has Been Turned Off and Just Hand Over the Chocolate and No One Will Get Hurt. She has been featured on more than one hundred radio programs, including FamilyLife Today. Publishers Weekly describes her as “funny, forthright and unforgettable.” Linamen lives with her family in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Visit her website at http://www.karenlinamen.com/

If you'd like to win a copy of this book just leave me a comment and I'll make the draw on Monday morning January 5.

UPDATED TO ADD: Please make sure you leave a way to get ahold of you either through an email address or website. If I can't get ahold of you I can't let you know you've won which means I'll have to draw again!