Christmas Tree

Hello my fellow bloggers...
"He came into the world...."Hebrews 10:5 Did you know in ancient Scandinavia, the evergreen tree was a symbol of life in the middle of a cold dark winter? They cut down evergreens and brought them to their homes as a source of encouragement. And it was Martin Luther who made it popular as a Christmas symbol of new life given to us by God, wrapped up in the form of a baby. I am delighted to tell you that we have put up our Christmas tree. To tell you the truth, I wanted to put it up much sooner. I have been feeling the spirit of the season for a few weeks now. We usually put it up on December 1st but we decided to do it a week early. We listened to Christmas music and put our nativity scene on the piano. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill towards men! "Luke 2:14

Chocolate anyone......

With Christmas right around the corner I know I'll be eating my share of chocolate (more than my share) . Its one of life's little pleasures. The Bible tells us that He opens His hand and satisfies His children with good things (Ps. 104:28). I think that includes chocolate. After all, He made the cocoa trees and beans, the sunshine and rain. He causes it to grow.
So if you love chocolate I hope you will enjoy it this Christmas season.

This is what I'm for...

I'm for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
I'm for my husband and he for me.
I'm for my kids, of course.
I'm for family.
I'm definitely for friends.
I'm for soup, any soup.
I'm for snickers.
I'm for full moons, so pretty.
I'm for shopping at Value Village.
I'm for reading.
I'm for the art of homemaking.
I'm for the art cardmaking.
I'm so for pretty books with glossy pages.
I'm for blogging , of course...
and reading my friends blogs.
I'm for tear jerker movies.
I'm for sweaters...not necessarily on me.
I'm for home....
I'm am Nancy Leigh DeMoss.
I'm for being a stay at home mom....I'll never regret a minute of it.
I'm for Chai Tea...thanks to Marianne
I'm still for coffee too.
I'm for homeschool....thanks for inspiring me Tina. You told me I could do it. You remind me why I do it.
I'm for dates with my honey even if its to Canadian Tire.
I'm for small women's Bible study.
I'm for spur of the moment field trips.
I'm for cheap fuel prices.
I'm for Olive Garden...my favorite.
I'm for playing piano although I have a looong way to go.
I'm for learning new songs and singing alto.
I'm for grapes...please don't get me anymore.
I'm for pretty journals (getting back into journaling again)
I'm for Settlers of Catan.
I'm for Knack Zuut.
I'm for tomato juice with a little lime.
I'm for getting to bed early...hardly ever happens.
I'm for snow ...lots of it.
I'm for holding a soft ,warm,sleeping baby.
I'm for making my husbands favorite dish....Japanise stir-fry.
I'm for going on walks.
I'm for new shoes that don't hurt my feet.
I'm for bookstores.
I'm for warm apple pie with ice cream.
I'm for coming home from a trip.
I'm for remembering my dad.
I'm for canning with Aggie Heide...our meema thanks to Moomer.
I'm for watching the kids toboggan.
I'm for coloring...really I am.
I'm for a good massage.
I'm for meal planning... I'm starting that again.
I'm for visiting my mom. She won't always be there.
I'm for Jaffa walks.
I'm for Marianne's phone calls and her good idea's.
I'm for doing something I thought I couldn't do.
I'm for the colors yellow, green, blue, purple, red and pink.
I'm for fresh cinnamon buns.
I'm for the scent of lavender pine-sol.
I'm for camping....not unpacking from camping.
I'm for looking through our albums.
I'm for 25 degree temperature days.
I'm for Aquafina water.
I'm for good deals at No Frills.
I'm for getting a new spiral bound notebook.
I'm for scented candles...not necessarily burning them.
I'm for snickers...did I already say that.
I'm for anything with nuts.
I'm for brown paper packages tied up with string.....I got one today.

I just know I'm forgetting something.

Ladies, I simply must share a recipe with you all. I love the Olive Garden. When I get a chance to go there I always order the "all you can eat" soup,salad and breadsticks. The soup I order is the Pasta e Fagioli. Soooo good. I'm a soup kind of girl. Well, the other day I came across the recipe. I was thrilled. And I want to share it with you.

Pasta e Fagioli Soup

2 lbs. ground beef
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can red kidney beans, drained
1 can Great Northern beans, drained
3 cans beef stock (or 4 1/2 cups homemade)
3 tspn. oregano (I substitute Italian Seasoning)
2 tspn. pepper
5 tspn. parsley
1 tspn. Tobasco sauce (I omit this)
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 c. pasta

Brown beef in a skillet. Drain fat and place meat in a crock pot or large stock pot. Add everything but the pasta. Crockpot: cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours. Stovetop: Simmer on low for about 3 hours. Just before serving, cook pasta and add to soup.

I chose yellow font today because its a bright and cheerful color and that 's how I feel today. But let me tell you about yesterday first. I woke up with a headache....now you know the rest of the story but let me tell you the details. So my headache progressed to a migrane. I tried taking a walk because sometimes the cold air helps. Didn't help... I took Excedrin and took a nap....no go. I finally was able to vomit....sorry girls......and that usually takes care of it. But that didn't do it this time. So my last resort was to call a certain friend of mine and she gave a massage that was torturous but that totally took care of my migraine.
Thanks Maria!
And then a very special friend came over and brought me homemade noodle soup for my birthday. That was a very wonderful way to end the day. Plus she brought me a large coffee.
Thanks Marianne!
And today is a beautiful sunny day. The world seems brighter and things are not as bad as they seemed yesterday.