SEEING RED AND PRAYERS NEEDED

I spent the month of January planning to get out my Valentine decorations.  Then the first week of February came and went and I still had not gotten them out.  At this point I realized that it was not going to happen. 

SO…

Since red is my favorite color, I thought I would share some of my reds.  You may see a few hearts but they are ones that I leave out year round.

 
       

     

   

 















 

 

   

PRAYER REQUESTS

Please pray for my niece Lisa.  She was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer and is under going treatment at this time.

Also, my Mom will be having a heart valve replaced in March.  Please pray that she stays well as she awaits the surgery.

Blessings,
Sue

MY BLOG LIST DISAPPEARED

I have been working on creating a blog new list.  So, if you have been on my list and do not see your name, or you would like to be on my list, please email me and I will add you.

Thank you, 
Sue

I just deleted my first inappropriate comment - it was embarrassing for any of my followers to read because I am not like that.  I do not want to add the annoying verification to my blog but not sure what to do.  Anyone else had this problem?

GOOD LUCK SALAD

In the Southern United States, it's traditional to eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day. This all traces back to the legend that during the Civil War, the town of Vicksburg, Mississippi, ran out of food while under attack. The residents fortunately discovered black-eyed peas and the legume was thereafter considered lucky. 

A couple of years ago I found a recipe for black-eyed pea salad and it has become a part of our New Year’s meal.

Good Luck Salad

juice of 1 lime 
2 cups baby spinach, torn into bite size pieces
1 (15 0z.) can black-eyed peas, drained & rinsed well
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup bell pepper, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
hot pepper sauce, to taste (I use Crystal hot sauce)

Combine all ingredients.
May be chilled or served at room temperature.
Enjoy!

A BIT OF TRIVIA, if you are interested.

Today, the tradition of eating black-eyed peas for the New Year has evolved into a number of variations and embellishments of the luck and prosperity theme including:

• Served with greens (collards, mustard or turnip greens, which varies regionally), the peas represent coins and the greens represent paper money.
• Cornbread, often served with black-eyed peas and greens, represents gold.
• For the best chance of luck every day in the year ahead, one must eat at least 365 black-eyed peas on New Year's Day.
• Black-eyed peas eaten with stewed tomatoes represent wealth and health.
• In some areas, actual values are assigned with the black-eyed peas representing pennies or up to a dollar each and the greens representing anywhere from one to a thousand dollars.
• Adding a shiny penny to the pot just before serving is another tradition practiced by some. When served, the person whose bowl contains the penny receives the best luck for the New Year, unless of course, the recipient swallows the coin, which would be a rather unlucky way to start off the year.

The catch to all of these superstitious traditions is that the black-eyed peas are the essential element and eating only the greens without the peas, for example, will not do the trick.

What traditional foods do y’all eat on New Year’s Day?

Wishing you blessings and prosperity in the New Year,
Sue

A NEW BEGINNING!

                 

Two of my favorite Scriptures as I contemplate a New Year are:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:18-19

I love the fact that God delights in doing something new and He delights in involving us in His new plans. Every day presents us with a new opportunity to discover and experience more of God's love. Our faithful God who loves us greatly has given us an everlasting hope, and each day, a new beginning.

If we treat each day as a new day to do new things in a new manner, we will be amazed at how many new opportunities will come our way. The most beautiful thing about this concept is that we don't have to do it on our own. It is the Lord's mercies that are new every morning. Every morning we have fresh instances of God’s compassion towards us. So as we begin a New Year my prayer for you is:

                      

May God make your year a happy one!

Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain,
But by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes;

Not by making your path easy,
But by making you sturdy to travel any path;

Not by taking hardships from you,
But by taking fear from your heart;

Not by granting you unbroken sunshine,
But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;

Not by making your life always pleasant,
But by showing you when people and their causes need you most, and by making you anxious to be there to help.

God's love, peace, hope and joy to you for the year ahead.
Sue                                                                                                                                     

A PAJAMA AND SOUP DAY

I rarely have a day that I do not have somewhere to go but, thankfully, today was one of those days.  So I decided it was a good day for a “pajama day.”  I caught up on some ironing and made a pot of Ham, Potato, and Corn Chowder this morning.  And had a relaxing afternoon watching a movie and reading.

I will spare you a picture of me in my PJs, but will show a picture of the yummy chowder.

A simple, but delicious supper and a perfect ending to a restful day.

I hope you are finding some time to rest and relax after this busy season. 

Blessings,
Sue

TWAS THE NIGHT AFTER CHRISTMAS

Twas the night after Christmas
and as you look all around
not a Christmas decoration can be found.

When do you put away your Christmas decorations?

For me it is sometime between Christmas and New Year’s Day.  This year it was today.  This morning as I was tidying up from our family celebration, I began to gather up a few decorations and the next thing I knew I had grouped everything but the tree on the dining table.  Hubby brought in the storage bins and it was all packed away.

Then we went out for a couple of hours to make some returns.  Although the stores were busy the return lines weren’t very long, so there was time left over to do some shopping.  We found a great deal on some shirts for hubby.  I’m always on the lookout for a bargain.

After returning home this afternoon I took all of the ornaments off of the tree and put them away.  The only thing left is the tree and hubby will put that away in the morning.  It is so nice to have the house clean and back to normal.

I hope each of you had a wonderful day of celebration with family and friends.  We enjoyed a snack supper and gift exchange with our kids and grands on Christmas Eve.  And then on Christmas Day our kids and their families joined us at my parents’ home for dinner.  Time spent with family is always a joy and a blessing.

Wishing each of you a blessed New Year,
Sue

A BIT OF CHRISTMAS AROUND OUR HOME

I love decorating for Christmas and have often been a bit excessive with my décor, but this year I chose to simplify.  I think this is probably the least amount of decorating I have ever done.  We usually put up 3 or more trees, but last year we only put up one tree and I chose to decorate that one in a prim theme.  Well this year we chose to put up one tree again, but our grandchildren requested that I do this one with all of my vintage glass ornaments – and of course I want to please them.

A couple of views of the tree with some close ups.          

I have a huge Santa collection, but this year I chose to use just a few of my favorites – all are gifts from family or friends. These are located on top of our entertainment center.

 

We have had this kissing couple since we got married and I could never leave them out of the décor. 

Trencher filled with greens and faux snowballs on Dining table.
  

Faux “feather” tree from Hobby Lobby decorated with rusty cookie cutter ornaments and prim candy canes.

Small wire tree with mini prim candy canes and mercury ornaments on Kitchen counter.

My favorite nativities.   
        

                       For 
                      unto
                     you is
                  born this
                 day in the
              city of David 
            a Savior, who is
       Christ the Lord. And
     this shall be a sign unto
  you; You shall find the babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes,
                    lying in a
                    manger.
                     Luke 2:
                     11 & 12

Christmas blessings,
Sue

A PARISIAN AFFAIR AND A BIT OF THIS & THAT

I should have made this post in October and here it is the end of November.  But I’m going to post it anyway because don’t want to miss the opportunity to share another special birthday celebration.

In September I shared that our granddaughter, Hannah, had turned 16 – well eighteen days later our number four granddaughter, Kaley, also turned 16. 

Kaley celebrated her birthday at a joint party with her friend Maddie, who also turned 16 in October.  The theme of their party was A PARISIAN AFFAIR.  Everything was decorated in black, white, and pink, with touches of Paris all around (they had replicas of the Eifel tower and large black and white pictures depicting scenes from Paris).  Over 100 hundred friends attended this semi-formal affair for dancing, fun, and lots of great food. 

A candy buffet – all done up in pink and black.

Kaley, our birthday girl.

Kaley and Maddie hamming up as they blow out the candles.

The girls said it was everything they had dreamed it would be.  I know we, as grandparents, had a great time watching them enjoy their celebration.

A FALL GET AWAY

We left right after Kaley’s party for a get away to the mountains.  We had a great time relaxing, hiking, and enjoying the fall foliage.  For us Central Floridians it was a real treat.

Not the best pictures – but the leaves were gorgeous.



We spent a day at the Biltmore – the gardens were beautiful.



By the time we got home it was November.  I have spent several days this month taking my Mom to doctor’s appointments.  She is having some heart problems and has been referred to a cardiac surgeon.  We have her consultation on Monday and will see what her next step is to be.  I would greatly appreciate your prayers for her, and wisdom for the family as we help her make health care decisions.

I hope you al1 had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are able to take the time to enjoy the month of December as we celebrate the birth of Jesus – the reason for the  Christmas season.

Blessings,
Sue