Thankful for Electricity!

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Have you ever experienced having no electricity? It’s awful! We depend on electricity for so many things, and it’s easy to take it for granted and not realize what a blessing it is in our lives. A teacher friend was telling me how she did without electricity for several days during a winter storm. She didn’t have any honda generators so she stayed in bed with piles of blankets and got up only when necessary. That’s definitely not fun and I hope we never have to experience that!  I am very thankful for electricity!

Why I Don’t Bake Cookies Every Week!

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The holidays are a time when I usually gain at least five pounds.  I think I’m doing OK so far and haven’t gained but maybe a pound, so there’s no need for Lipofuze or anything like that.  One thing that has helped has been the fact that I’ve done very little baking of sweets.   I’ve baked cookies once, and I realized it’s a good idea I don’t bake cookies much.  Fresh baked cookies right out of the oven are too hard to resist!  If I baked cookies every week, I would definitely gain at least five pounds.

Personalized Gifts

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Have you ever had personalized jewelry?  I remember having some as a child, and I thought it was very special.  Several years ago, a friend gave me a key chain with my initials on it which was a thoughtful gift!  Maybe part of what makes a personalized item special is the fact that it’s unique, and the person giving the gift had to go to extra effort to get the gift personalized.  What about you?  Have you ever had anything personalized?

Hectic Time of Year!

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There are many ads in the mail and newspapers plus lots of ads on the radio and TV for a mattress for sale, toys for sale, appliances for sale, etc.  Christmas time has gotten way too commercialized!   There is so much commercialism that it takes away from the true meaning of Christmas.  People get caught up in the hectic pace this time of year, and some can’t fully enjoy the special times with family and friends because they are exhausted.  Hmmm…seems like if we prioritized and focused on what is really important then people could fully enjoy this time of year.

Christmas Song: “You’re Here” by Francesca Battistelli

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“You’re Here” is one of my favorite new Christmas songs.  Francesca Basttistelli is a new mom herself, and you can tell this beautiful Christmas song is sung from a mother’s heart.  She uses words to help the listener visualize baby Jesus, and uses her passion to help the listener remember how He is still here with us.
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Other songs by Francesca Battistell:

“This is the Stuff”  (Need patience?)

“Beautiful, Beautiful” (Mercy reaching to save me)

Menu Plan Monday 12/20/10

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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.

Mesothelioma

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There are many diseases and health problems that I never heard of growing up.  Take Mesothelioma, for example.  When I first heard about it several years ago, I had to look it up and do research.  According to Wikipedia, Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that develops from the protective lining that covers many of the body’s internal organs.  That lining is called the mesothelium, and that type of cancer is usually caused by exposure to asbestos.   Even washing the clothes of a person who works with asbestos can put a person at risk.   So now, when someone mentions Mesothelioma, I know what they’re talking about.

Shopping & Technology

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This time of year is so busy!  I’m thankful there’s such a thing as POSGuys to make checking out at the store much quicker!  Do some of you remember the days when the person at the checkout counter had to search for the price on the item and then ring it up?  That took so much time, especially if they couldn’t find the price.  Then they would have to send somebody back to find the price on the shelf or bring up another item with a price tag.  Can you imagine what Friendly Friday would be like if we still had prices on items to be rung up?  Technology has made shopping much more efficient time-wise!

* Christmas Song: “While You Were Sleeping” by Casting Crowns

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“Little town of Bethlehem, looks like another silent night…”

The group Casting Crowns has a way of getting those listening to their songs to think more deeply about things sometimes than they do while listening to some other songs out there.  This song is no exception.  “While You Were Sleeping” encourages people to think about their own life situation here on this earth.

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Children’s Gifts for $5

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I had a nice surprise this week! Family Dollar sent a package to me, and this is what I found inside the box:

When I opened the gifts, I found two children’s gifts. There were boxing gloves for a boy and this adorable baby doll for a girl. Both gifts are only $5 at Family Dollar. If you’re needing some last minute inexpensive gifts for kids, then check out Family Dollar. Last time I was there, they had a good selection of children’s toys for $5 and $10.

Exercising Indoors

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If we had the room, I would like to have a treadmill like I used to use at the YMCA.  It’s great when you can’t walk outside because of inclement weather.  I wouldn’t even mind used gym equipment as long as it was in excellent condition.  Having to stay inside if it’s snowy or icy outside wouldn’t be a problem as far as exercising because it could be done inside while listening to favorite music and looking out the windows at the beautiful winter scenery.  Doesn’t that sound nice?

Friendly Friday 12/17/10

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Welcome to Friendly Friday!

PLEASE NOTE:  Due to the holiday next week, Friendly Friday will NOT be posted next Thursday and will instead return at 11 EST on Thursday, December 30th.

Remember, YOU can host the link list on your blog too! Just click “Get the code here…” at the bottom of the list. The code is different every week, so be sure to get the new code when hosting Friendly Friday on your blog. Hosting the list is a great way for everyone to get even more traffic to their blog.

Thanks for joining the Friendly Friday celebration hosted by Christi at Frugal Novice, Xenia at Thanks, Mail Carrier and Charla at Healthy Home Blog! We invite you to join us every Friday to make more friends in blogville, get more blog followers and follow other great blogs out there.

To join in the Friendly Friday celebration, include your family-friendly link in our list, follow the hostesses in the first 3 spots and then start blog hopping! Visit other blogs on the list and comment to give them some blog love. Then take a minute to follow them through Google Friend Connect – this is a good way to keep up with other blogs, but also lets us show support to each other! Please DO NOT list your giveaways here, links must be to either your homepage or your Friday posting with your blog title. All others will be deleted.

When people comment on your blog and let you know they’re a part of Friendly Friday, return the favor and follow them back. This way everyone gets traffic and followers out of participating, and it’s a win-win situation. We would love for you to also grab our Friendly Friday button and post it on your blog and/or in a post – the more bloggers that find out about Friendly Friday and participate, the better!

Spotlight on Friendly Friday Followers! We love your participation and want to show it! In addition to gaining followers, each week we’ll select three blogs at random and will feature links and a write-up for those blogs in the content of next week’s Friendly Friday post. There are so many seriously wonderful blogs out there, and this will be a great way to highlight some of those each week. Say hello to the lucky chosen 3 for this week (and feel free to stop by and give them a little extra love):

Alessandra @ The Adventures of a Greek Italian Girl writes about Italian/Greek heritage/culture, vintage, animals, fashion, food, books, movie & beauty reviews, & more. If you need a smile, be sure to check out her post highlighting baby animal videos. You’ll find movie and television show reviews, posts about fashion, and as of late, recipes too. This blog has a little bit of everything!

Amanda @ Blogger Broadcast says her blog is a “blog for broadcasting consumer wise choices, such as products, services, businesses and blogging tips.” She shares tips on making money online and many links to blog events and hops. You’ll also find information on how to do things like create a signature to put at the end of posts. This blog focuses a lot on helping other bloggers become even better!


Kim @ Momma of 5 is, well, a mom of five. 🙂 She has dealt with many struggles from early on in her life but has chosen to grow and learn from them, and depends a lot on her faith to get through everything. Her writing shares her family with readers, from everything to updates on her children to tougher issues like her father dealing with cancer. You really feel like you get to know her through reading her blog.

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