Happy Fall

Happy Fall and Pumkins...                                    


A woman was asked by a coworker, "What is it like to be a Christian?"

The coworker replied, "It is like being a pumpkin." God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. Then He cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff.

God removes the seeds of doubt, hate, and greed. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."


This was passed onto me from a Pumpkin... now it's your turn to pass it onto other Pumpkins...


Questions, Comments??


Until next time... GOD BLESS!!

A long Autumn Season

Good evening readers... oh boy... it's been almost two weeks since I wrote... that doesn't mean I haven't been keeping up... I have. After a long hard month of October, Breast Cancer Awareness month, I have had a bummer start to November with very close friend to wind up in our local Pallaitive Care unit and just recently passed away.


Back in March 2010 I had another very close friend to pass away from Breast Cancer too... both were reaccurances and they both were close friends to one another as well.


Back in 2004, a group of about 12 or 14 Breast Cancer survivors and their caregivers formed an "Adventures" group. Over the years, we all learned to Fly-fish together and went on several Fly fishing expediitions together. We got really adventurous and took several trips down to one of the Carribean islands several years in a row.


We have bonded tightly throughout the years and now three in the group have passed away in the last 18 months. We have heavy hearts to see our dear, dear friends pass on but they are all in such a better place, walking the streets of gold, healed, with no more illness, pain, suffering or the shedding of tears. We continue to take care of the loved ones left behind and try to get back on track with our lives.


So thats where I have been.


I haven't kept up with the food diary in a couple weeks due to being focused on my friend and her family.


Two sermons I heard recently were Hebrews 12:1-2 on Saturday November 13th at the funeral I attended and Luke 6:27-42 Sunday November 14th in church. Both are excellant.


*QAD: "Don't judge a book by its cover, you never know what story it has to tell, it might just surprise you".


Tidbit for the day: Before getting on a scale to weigh... do not fill up on water and its always best to weigh right after getting up in the morning time after going to the bathroom before having the first cup of coffee or tea.

I have found a website called BlogFrog... anyone out there hear of it?? BlogFrog is a free website to that hosts hundreds of communities of bloggers and thousands of topics to discuss and talk about. I am still in the process of researching BlogFrog but I'm getting ideas for my blog topics too... stay tuned.


*QAD = Quote A Day...


Questions, Comments??


Until next time... GOD BLESS!!

Major Events

Good morning readers...

Did everyone celebrate or participate in Halloween??

My husband and I do not believe in Halloween, so therefore we do not celebrate or participate. Our tradition is to go out and have a nice meal...

For the past several weeks I have a ton on my mind and haven't been sleeping well... I've been finding myself off to bed between 7-8p and getting up around 5a... mind you my normal hrs are in bed by 8:30p and up by 6:30-7a... last night I was asleep by 7:30p up at 3:30a back to bed at 4:45a and back up again at 6:30a... I can not seem to get a hold on my regular routine or figure it out...

Well today is the Mid term election day... polls are open from 7a-7p... GET OUT AND VOTE...

QUOTES

I love quotes of all kinds...

*QAD: What a distressing contrast there is between the radiant intelligence of the child and the feeble mentality of the average adult... Sigmund Freud  July 2006

"If you Bite it, Write it"...  Friend - October 2010

"Get out and vote... For those who do not exercise their right to vote, have NO RIGHT to Complain" November 2010

* Quote A Day

Questions, Comments??

Until next time GOD BLESS!!

Random thoughts

I have been blogging now 5 weeks off and on... there's been lots going on being October and Breast Cancer awareness month and all...

Over the past weeks, I had reasons for wanting to blog and then went to type and never blogged. Some of my thoughts for titles over the month were as follows:

Posting recipes
Posting my eating plan
Random Emails and Quotes
Sermons I had heard
Scriptures I had read
The mid term election
Halloween

One at a time...

I don't cook much and I don't have a favorite recipe... I just like to eat. My most favorite recipes are from my mother. During the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays my mother make two of my favorite dishes... Cranberry Salad and Christmas Casserole. Cranberry salad is side dish... a mixture of chopped apples, cranberries, oranges and nuts in a fancy jello mold with homemade mayonnaise, to die for!! Christmas Casserole is a main dish... baked grits, cheese and sausage casserole with butter running all through it... another to die for dish.

 CRANBERRY SALAD 

4 Cups (1lbs) fresh cranberries

2 medium apples, peeled

1 tbsp grated orange rind

11/2 cups diced fresh oranges

2 cups sugar or equivalent

1 cup pecans, chopped

2 envelopes unflavored gelatine

3/4 cup cold water

Wash cranberries. Soften gelatine in cold water. Place over hot water to melt. While gelatine is melting, put through a food chopper along with apples, using the medium blade. Stir in orange rind, diced oranges, sugar and pecans. Mix well. Stir into the cranberry mixture. Turn into a 2 quart mold which has been rinsed in cold water.  Chill until firm. Just before serving, turn out onto a serving plate. Garnish with a salad green as desired. 6-8 servings.                                                                                                                                                   

To empty salad onto a plate. Put hot water in sink about the heighth of the salad mold. Have the plate you want to put it on right at hand. Hold mold in hot water until you count to five. Then put plate over mold and turn it upside down. Salad should fall out onto plate. Put in refrigerator immediately to re-gel. Be careful how long you leave the salad in hot water, so it won't melt too much. Better to leave it too short a time and have to do it again for a few seconds, than to leave it too long and have it melt!

I have discovered that when I make this with Splenda I have to use one extra package of gelatin and a full extra 3/4 C water.

CHRISTMAS CASSEROLE

4 cups quick grits (1 C grits to 4 C water)

Seasoned salt to taste (1 tsp or so)

2T dried onions

1 stick butter

8-10 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, cut in little squares

1 LB hot sausage ( I like Rudy’s – less grease)

4-6 eggs

While grits are cooking, put sausage on, and stir with fork until pieces are fairly small. While sausage is cooking, put eggs in blender and cut cheese into about ½ “ cubes.

Drain sausage on paper towels. When grits are done, remove from heat, add butter and mix. Blend eggs and add a little of the grits to the eggs. Then add the eggs to the grits and pour into casserole, sprayed with Pam. Mix in sausage and cheese. (can be frozen at this point) Cook, lightly covered with foil, at 350 for about and hour+, or until the center is not runny. Serve with yummy bread and juice and/or fruit and you’ve got all your breakfast – OR dinner on Sunday!

The reason I call this Christmas casserole is that I prepare it way ahead, put it in the freezer, and take it out as I’m going to bed on Christmas eve.  I set the over to come on about and hour and a half before I’m ready to eat, and the casserole is ready when we get up.

To increase the recipe I make an extra cup of grits, add a couple of Tbs of butter, two more eggs and seasoned salt to taste.

 Enjoy!!

Questions, comments??  Until next time... GOD BLESS!!

A weight lifted off my shoulders

For days now which has turned into weeks, there has been something bothering me... I have just figured it out and I have changed it. It was my blog name and what it represented... I have a new blog title... I have transitioned from conservativechristianityblackandwhite to sweetspiritwithinme...

Friends were telling me that my old blog name was hard and racial... I didn't mean for it to sound hard and racial... I was trying to express who I was... and now I'm a new person... blogging is still new to me, please be patient...

Questions, comments??


Until then... GOD BLESS!!

Catching Up - The end to a sucessful and committed day

While my husband was out at our lake house today trying to get our new refridgerator fixed which never happened, (another time for another story) I have been on this blog all day trying to figure out how to add Wigets and Gadgets... I have sucessfully learned how to do both... if you were to ask me how I accomplished adding both Widgets and Gadgets it would take me as long to figure out what I did and then tell you.

In the last week, my husband and I traveled down to Florida for a mini vacation with family and friends. Florida in October is so beautiful... cool in the mornings and evenings and warm during the day, just beautiful.                 

Yesterday was my sister's birthday and today is my brother in law's birthday... Happy Birthday to the both of them...

In the last week or so I have committed to keeping a count on carb intake (I'm allowed seven carbs per day) as well as exercising four times a week. I missed exercise today due to figuring out how to add Widgets and Gadgets:(

In Florida we ate Basil pasta, Ceasar salad, Sausage casserole w/fruit and coffee, turkey, lettuce and tomato sandwiches, Shrimp and Grits, Brocolli "fun" salad, cereal w/milk and coffee, Raw/Baked Oysters, Gumbo, Steaks, Piella, garden salad, Sausage casserole and coffee, Chicken salad in tomatoes and red wine with dinner ever night (8oz total per night).

I have not only kept count of carbs I have decided to try and only eat a palmful of protein and carbs at dinner time and 2 or more palmfuls of raw or steamed vegetables and fresh fruit a day. I have verbally committed back to eating 45 calorie yogurt for snacks but have yet to accomplish that. Today at lunch I had chicken noodle soup and actually read the back of the can for serving size. I only had 1/2 can of soup... tonight for dinner I had a palmful of protein and 2 palmfuls of aspargras on a salad plate instead of a regular sized one...

My husband and I have verbally committed to watching a streamed Netflix movie several times a week. I personally absolutely love Netflix and love trying to watch one (whether it be CD or by stream on the TV) every other night or so. This week we have seen: The Fiddler on the Roof, The Accidential Tourist... I have not been told what tonight's movie is... so I better get off here and go find out...

Questions, comments??

Until Later, have a good one and GOD BLESS!!

An Award for You and Me...

Good morning readers... I'm so sorry it's been this long since I have written but life happened and it got in the way. Anyway, I was given the award below awhile back and I have just figured out how to Copy and Paste it. With this award I was asked to also tell 5 and 10 things about me and pass the award onto you... here it goes, Enjoy!!

  

5 words that describe my blog... HONEST, THOUGHTS PROVOKING, ODD, ORIGINAL AND UNIQUE  

Something about my life that I would change if I could...

I CAN NOT THINK OF ANYTHING I WOULD CHANGE ABOUT MY LIFE

Ten things you May or May Not know about me in No certain order:

1. I HAVE BLONDE HAIR/BLUE EYES

2. I LOVE THOUGHT PROVOKING QUOTES RELATED TO THE BIBLE

3. I WENT AWAY TO SCHOOL AT THE AGE OF 12

4. I HAVE 4 CATS AND ONE SPOILED DOG 

5. I HAVE BEEN IN A MAGAZINE

6. I HAVE HAD 4 JOBS (PART TIME) AT ONCE

7. I LOVE TO DANCE

8. I AM NOT A MULTI-TASKER

9. I LOVE TO FISH

10. I LOVE DISCUSSING THE BIBLE AND POLITICS

Answer the questions above, describe your blog in 5 words and tell me 10 things about you.