Christmas is nearly here.  Are you ready?  We are!  It’s so exciting to be with family and those we love.  I like getting Christmas cards and hearing from friends who have moved away and seeing pictures of their family and how their kids have grown.   Most of all, I love hearing all the Christmas songs on the radio about the birth of Jesus and thinking about what He means in my life.  His virgin birth was unlike any other on this earth, His sinless life was unlike any other, He died a death unlike any other because He died for the whole world including me, and his empty tomb is unlike any other because He rose to life on the third day!  That’s the best gift ever!

If you like Christmas songs too, here’s a beautiful one:

Celine Dion Sings “Oh, Holy Night” (here are other Christmas songs)

“You’re Here” by Francesca Battistelli
(This song is written from the viewpoint of Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus. By the way, Francesca is a new mother herself – just had their first baby)

Well, I guess you can see that’s something I’m passionate about!  Now, on to menu planning for the week.  This week is going to be really flexible!  Here’s my tentative menu:

Monday:  Salmon Patties, mashed potatoes, green peas

Tuesday:  Sub sandwiches with raw veggies

Wednesday:  Homemade Chicken Soup

Thursday:  Sauteed Yellow Squash in Herb Butter with chicken tenders (cut in bite-size pieces) cooked in with the squash, green beans

Friday:  Crunchy Chicken Crescents Easy,delicious & impressive entree! (made with crescent rolls, canned chicken, flavored cream cheese, etc.)

Raw veggies & dip

This next recipe is from Becky, a dear teacher friend of mine that I worked with.  She said that one of her sons doesn’t even like pears but loves this recipe.  At Christmas, she has to make two of these because it goes so fast!

Baked Gouda recipe:

• Gouda Cheese
• 1 can Crescent Rolls
• 1 can sliced pears with syrup
• 1/4-1/3 cup brown sugar

Separate pieces of crescent roll dough and form a pinwheel shape in the middle of a nice dish (or pie plate would probably work).  Place whole piece of gouda cheese in the middle of the rolls, then bring the ends of the crescent rolls up to the top of the cheese and pinch together so that the cheese is completely covered with the dough.  Pour can of slices pears with the syrup over the top.  Sprinkle generously with brown sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until the cheese starts to bubble and barely oozes out of the rolls.  Serve warm with thin crackers.