This year has probably been one of the roughest because so many unexpected things happened. There were times I cried in my car wondering if it would ever get better. It was definitely like one of those crazy roller coaster rides! Despite all that, I realized who my true friends were and met some real-life angels. After so many years, I now know that angels have no expectations. They simply are around to offer unconditional protection. They don't ask to be repaid, or have negative demeanors despite offers of help, they accept your faults, treasure your friendship, encourage, make you laugh when needed, and mostly listen without ever judging where you are in life. So I give mad props to Tawanna, Tiani, Kels, Kelly, Lorie, as well as Dr. Sawyer and her Medical Team, Somehow they were in the right place at the right time, every time.
We all think our problems are insurmountable until we meet up with others who've had it even worse. This year, I met military wives and mothers who lost children, or became caretakers for husbands struggling with trauma or injuries, and they were so amazingly strong! I met abused women who were running for their lives and misunderstood; many were homeless with no food to eat. I think about them every day wondering how they got through, as they became powerful messengers for others. Kudos to Shelly and Lena and their families and so many others. My prayers and thoughts are with you.
Wow! I interacted with so many cool bloggers and authors this year that it made me do the happy dance! They shared new books, recipes, fashion tips, freebies and profound thoughts all
throughout the year, and it was fabulous. In addition to sharing such awesome content, they stopped over to say hello to me on a regular basis, which was very much appreciated. Lexxie, Red, Anna, Mary, Angela, Kels, Kathy, Braine, Stephanie, Sophia, Sharonda, Lissa, Kimba, Joy, Sarah, Keionda, Lark, Blogoratti and my buddy Lanie - you guys totally rock with your comments and support! For Genique, Brenda Novak, Catherine Anderson, Patricia Maxwell, Cathryn Fox, Pamela Morsi, Delilah Devlin, Eden Bradley, and Postcards, I thank you all so very, very much!
When you enjoy the work of an author, or get caught up in a program on television, it's great to get to know them one-on-one behind the scenes to find out they are regular and fun people, who just happen to be famous.
Super kudos to Anna from Herding Cats and Burning Soup who had the courage to offer up a FREE Christmas Dinner for other bloggers in the NC area. Still amazed with that one! For those of you who know her, this image fits her perfectly! (lol) ChumpLady who normally focuses on the cheating spouse reminded me that there is a difference between kindness and niceness. I never really thought about it, but her take on these commonly used words totally makes sense. Visit her site to find out more. If you're alone, or with family and friends, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and an even better New Year! We hope all your dreams come true in 2016 and that you're surrounded by lots of love, love, love! Hugs... I'm just thrilled to be alive right now and smiling! I wish hottie hubby a super Merry Christmas with lots of food and fun! Of course, I hate that he's one of those guys who NEVER gains weight! (lol) ps. - if you've been following my blog, you may know that my son and grandbaby live out of town and I haven't seen them in 3 years! Well, he didn't want me to be alone while I've been recovering, so guess who's showing up in a few minutes??!!!!!
According to the folks over at www.statisticbrain.com, a tiny percentage of just 8% of the population actually KEPT their resolutions in 2015 and I'm not surprised. For 12 years in a row, I made the same ridiculous goal to lose weight and after about 30 days, I was done! (lol)
The trend of starting over began many years ago when John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, invented a new type of church service. These services were called Covenant Renewal Services, or what is now more traditionally known as Watch Night Services, held on New Year's Eve, as something different for those who didn't want to party. This was a time for many to worship and reflect on things past, as they renewed their commitment to God. Wikipedia
Fast forward from the 1700's where society now focuses on doing things to improve for the New Year, moving away from religion. My resolution for 2015 was to visit more blogs and thank goodness I didn't screw that up!(lol)
Today's recipe comes from Better Homes and Garden Magazine. This is a dessert that will make you a star in the kitchen with guests and family for the holidays.
Apple Sheet Cake
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13x9x2-inch baking pan; set aside. Peel, core, and coarsely shred one of the apples. Thinly slice remaining apple, removing seeds; cover and set apples aside. In a large bowl whisk together the butter, brown sugar, apple butter, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; whisk until combined. Fold in dried and fresh shredded apple. Spread batter into prepared pan. Arrange apple slices over batter.
Bake about 40 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove to a wire rack. Spoon Maple Icing over hot cake; spread evenly, using a pastry brush if necessary. Cool completely. Dust with apple pie spice or ground cinnamon.
MAPLE ICING
In a small bowl stir together 1 tablespoon melted butter, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 tablespoon milk until smooth.
Today, I had to run an errand for a friend and headed to Wal-Mart. I haven't had a cheeseburger in ages and decided to drive to a restaurant in Fayetteville called Tiger's Pizza & Subs, once I was finished. Of course, I arrived well before their opening time, but the owner was really nice and let me in 15 minutes early. I have one of those faces where people love to share, and today was no exception. Strangely, one of the owners walked over to me to put his belt on, and tuck in his shirt. Uh...well okay. He then pulled out his 357 placing it on my table, while I watched the Price is Right. He grinned and told me no one had better mess with his money or they had something coming. Huh...? I laughingly told him I came in peace and just wanted my cheeseburger and fries.
Before we get started, let's give a super shout out to my girl Kim of http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/, who lovingly does her weekly meme every Sunday about news, reviews, books and other great info. Also, this recipe comes straight to us from Lyuba of www.WillCookForSmiles.com, who says her kids love it! By the way, be sure to visit her site for some of the MOST amazing recipes you've ever seen! My mouth is watering already, and yours will, too! Isn't the name of her blog super cute?
PEPPERMINT WHITE CHOCOLATE HOT COCOA
INGREDIENTS
3 cups of whole milk (or 2%)
1 cup of white chocolate chips
1 cup of Peppermint Hershey's kisses
Whipped cream (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
In a small sauce pan, add the chocolate chips and kisses, on medium heat.
When it starts to melt, slowly add the the milk while stirring.
Cook (on medium), stirring slowly and constantly, until all the chocolate is melted and smooth (about 7-10 minutes).
VENDING MACHINE NEWS I don't use vending machines, but lots of people do, however, in the near future, if you're craving a Pepsi, you may be in for a surprise. In an attempt to be more healthy, look for Naked Juice and Hummus as a couple of your new choices, instead.
DON'T GET STUCK IN RETURN HELL
If you've picked up some goodies from Victoria’s Secret, they will issue a refund within 90 days, but if you come in after that, you'll only be able to receive merchandise credit. Still not bad, but either way, expect to pull out your driver’s license. Here’s what their return policy. This policy allows habitual returners to be penalized if applicable.
GIVE ME BACK MY EARS PLEASE
Has anyone noticed being really into a good movie on television when all of a sudden the background music comes on and nearly blasts your ears off? What in the world is up with that?
GET RID OF THAT BLOAT
Everyone thinks I'm nuts because I eat raw ginger all the time. Initially, I used it because it helped with nausea, but did you know that if you drink hot ginger tea, it can also help with that bloated tummy that's been getting on your nerves? Add the juice from half a lemon along with 1 Tb of thinly sliced ginger to 2 cups boiling water, then cut off the heat to let it steep for about 10 minutes. Strain, then sweeten with honey.
CELEBRATE YOUR BEAUTY
Now that it's almost that time again to pull out the resolutions, it got me to wondering. What do you absolutely love about yourself? Your smile, eyes, nose? This is the perfect time to celebrate the good things about yourself!
OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS
If you live in the NC, (where it's supposed to be 75 degrees on Christmas Day) area and would enjoy seeing a Victorian Christmas, stop by the Poe House through January 10. Visit http://museumofcapefear.ncdcr.gov for more info.
I'm hooked on movies and watch them every chance I can, but have you ever wondered which ones have topped the box office? Look below for the deets.
BESTSELLERS Did you know that AFTER the Bible, the #1 bestselling novel of all time is a Tale ofTwo Cities? Do you remember having to read that in school? Also, Harry Potter novels rank up there in the millions sold, too!.
The other day, a really good friend was telling me about a situation she experienced many years ago, and because of what she went through, (she's now divorced after 23 years of marriage) this quote came up. "I'd rather be hurt with the truth, then be happy with a lie". Powerful words that work with every type of relationship in life...
When I was a kid, I was obsessed with The Godfather and spy stories by Robert Ludlum, so I read them over and over again. Then I picked up a Barbara Cartland romance novel and was hooked on romance. Every time I could get my hands on a Harlequin romance,(remember how short the stories were?) a book by Rosemary Rogers, Patricia Maxwell, or Kathleen Woodiwiss, I was in heaven. But my obsession didn't stop there, and before I knew it, my house was overflowing with romance books by a zillion different authors.
It wasn't until later that I gravitated towards erotic romance, so I had to own everything by Sierra Cartwright, Melissa Schroeder, Sasha White, Shayla Black, Cathryn Fox and Cherise Sinclair, to name a few...but the list of authors continued to grow and grow and grow. My erotic list was outrageous! Eventually I toned it down and moved to books with less heat and included Catherine Anderson and Susan Elizabeth Phillips.
Now that I'm older, my TBR pile is quite eclectic. Yes, it still includes romance, but the genre of that is so huge now, that it covers everything from comedy to shapeshifting, to BDSM, to westerns. I even have a friend who loves to read about sheikhs! I've also thrown in spiritual, cookbooks, motivational, suspense and mystery to round things out. What about you? Do you only read a particular type of novel, or do you mix things up a little?
Every year, a close friend and I used to choose different neighborhoods in NC to check out all the really cool Christmas lights. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to do that together for quite some time, but I still get a kick out of all those neat decorations. When it comes to Christmas Tree Tinsel, the sky's the limit! There's no such thing as a plain old green tree the way we used to see back in the day. Some prefer tiny trees, and others enjoy
elegant tall trees, and then there's all that color!
This post is dedicated to ... Christmas Trees, Christmas Trees and more Christmas Trees. We hope you enjoy this fun and festive treat. Have a few things to take care of this week and may not be online as often, but will still be visiting other blogs to say hello.
ChumpLady who normally focuses on the cheating spouse reminded me that there is a difference between kindness and niceness. I never really thought about it, but her take on these commonly used words totally makes sense. Visit her site to find out more.
If you're alone, or with family and friends, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and an even better New Year! We hope all your dreams come true in 2016 and that you're surrounded by lots of love, love, love! Hugs... I'm just thrilled to be alive right now and smiling! I wish hottie hubby a super Merry Christmas with lots of food and fun! Of course, I hate that he's one of those guys who NEVER gains weight! (lol)
