My wish for you in the New Year...Health and Happiness, Love and Friendship, Kindness and Compassion, Energy and Strength, Rest and Renewal, Adventures and Security, and finding JOY in each day!!

Merry Christmas to all....

I hope that this season finds you in the company of those you love...taking time with family and friends, cherishing every moment together. Sending you wishes and prayers for a blessed, happy holiday and an amazing new year! New adventures are waiting..

The cross and the manger

This cross is to be given to Presleigh's teacher tomorrow for Christmas. When I showed it to Presleigh for approval, she said it wasn't very "christmassy." I began to second guess my gift. Should I save this for Easter? Should I have made something entirely different or perhaps bought something? We did contribute to a gift card for the class gift..but always need to have a personal touch to our gift-giving. Back to my dilemma...then the Lord put something on my heart that I would like to share with you jut a few days before we celebrate our Savior's birth.

"For God so loved the world...that he gave his one and only Son." Jesus came in the lowliest form..a baby born to a poor, lonely family...no room for them, no room for him. The manger filled with hay was the place that Jesus would first encounter humanity. If you have ever sat on a hay bale, gone for a hay ride or even fed horses hay, you know that ..It is prickly... It can poke, rub, give rashes to those with sensitive skin(imagine the skin of a baby)...It can cause you to sneeze, can get caught in your hair... It is felt through clothes and just to put it simply--It is annoying and uncomfortable. It is not down feathers,nor sheep skin. And most definitely not the way deity, nor royalty should be received.

God loved us so deeply, the world so deeply that the gift was not just the cross. Have you thought that without the gift of the manger, there would not be the gift of the cross. The two represent God's complete love for us. It was not just in the death and resurrection that he loved us..It is in the birth of Jesus Christ that he began his redemptive plan and it is in the cross that his love and forgiveness was made complete.

To use Presleigh's word...this cross is very "Christmassy." Blessings to all and may the peace of Jesus Christ dwell in you this holiday season....

A spot of Christmas Tea with Laura Bush

Yesterday was divine... I invited my mother, my sister and 2 friends and their girls along with my girls to a Christmas Tea at the Dallas Arboretum. A beautiful oasis in Dallas with breathtaking gardens, special events throughout the year and at Christmas they display over 500 nativities. The Christmas tea was hosted by the Women's Council of the Dallas Arboretum. We were so honored to have the former first lady, Laura Bush, to be our story teller. It was amazing. She was amazing.

We had the opportunity to meet her at a private reception before the tea actually began. She was as lovely in person as she is on television. At the tea, She read her book, Read All about It, that she co-wrote with Jenna, her daughter. It was a delight to have her read to the children. Presleigh was near her and even answered a question about President Bush.

But the day was even more perfect because of those that shared it with me. It is a day that my girls will never forget. They met someone who has been true to her husband, her family, her faith and her country. Someone with grace and integrity. My mom and my sister, the two most important women in my life, were there with us. It was a day for the girls in our family...priceless. Also, we share the day with friends. Life is best shared and special days are truly meant to be shared. I am blessed to have been able to share this day with Ann Michelle and her daughter, Megan and Lynne with her two girls, Lauren and Macy.

Some days we will recall the special events. Other days blend into the next... but in truth each day is a gift from our heavenly father. I pray that each day I see the beauty, the splendor and the blessings . Whether it is meeting a former first lady or meeting my children in the kitchen for breakfast....All are days that I will treasure. I hope you and I greet this day with joy and expectation for today is all we have!!

We interrupt this blog for...Cookies!!

Thank you for joining me on this Cookie Swap Day! Don't you love these cookie platters? Me, too. This one was a wonderful free image that I downloaded due to the fact that I am photography challenged...but enough about me. Pour a glass of milk or a cup of tea and have a few cookies on me.

My first recipe is one of my all time favorites that my mom made for us when I was younger. I can't make it anymore due to the fact that my youngest is highly allergic to nuts. So please enjoy these in your home and think of me when these little blossoms grace your table. There are shortcut versions to this recipe but from scratch is best!!!

Peanut Butter Blossoms

1 ¾ cups flour

1 tsp. soda

½ tsp. salt

½ c. margarine

½ c. peanut butter

½ c. sugar

½ c. brown sugar

1 unbeaten egg

2 T. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 package of chocolate kisses

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. . Mix flour, soda, and salt. Set aside. Cream next 4 ingredients. Add the last 3 ingredients Mix well . Add dry ingredients gradually. Shape into balls and Roll into additional sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately place a chocolate kiss in the center. YUMMY!!!

Recipe #2 isn't a cookie but isn't a Chex Mix swap..so enjoy!!

Chex Muddy Buddy Mix (or in Texas we call this Puppy Chow)

9 cups of Chex Cereal

1 c. chocolate chips

½ c. peanut butter (**I have left this out for Presleigh and it is still great!!)

¼ c. margarine

¼ tsp. vanilla

1 ½ c. powdered sugar

Pour Cereal in LARGE bowl. Combine next 3 ingredients in a microwave safe bowl and microwave on high 1 to 1 ½ minutes. Repeat in 15 second increments until smooth. Stir in vanilla. Then pour cereal and stir until coated. Pour sugar over “Coated cereal” and stir. Then store in an airtight container.

**This is a great gift giving treat. Place in a holiday tin lined with wax paper and your recipients will love you!!

Thanks for stopping by ...I hope you have many wonderful holiday treats and holiday memories and most of all, love to last long past the cookies on your platter!!

Blessings,

Chantal

Where have I been.....Part 2

Oh my, the last post was on the 24th. I left y'all thinking that we are still sick--SO many wonderful things have happenend since then. Actually, nearly a month has happened. It's amazing, some of my dearest friends blog everyday...I think about blogging everyday..Does that count??? Well, let me catch you up on all that has gone on. (However, I will skip the dailies of life- such as laundry, cleaning, cooking, taking and picking up girls at school and trying to put all things in their place---)

Halloween happened. Presleigh decided to be a CHA CHA Dancer. When we went trick or treating, someone called her Carmen Miranda. We went straight to google- She does look like her and was so happy to see her and all of her beautiful costumes. We had a great party for Presleigh's friends. It is amazing to me how some of these children had never bobbed for apples. I will let the pictures speak for them. They caught on real quick. The mummy wrap game is great...Lots of toilet paper but oooooh such fun!! The boys got carried away and teepeed (sp???) Presleigh's play house. Savannah was great- She still loves to dress up and help out. This year she was a Jeanie's "evil" cousin -from I dream of Jeanine. Next post will be on the fun getting ready fro Silver Bella and then the few pics and many memories I made while there. I promise I won't wait another month...maybe a few days!!

Lysol anyone?

Lysol anyone?? I just finished spraying Lysol disinfectant spray all around our house. Can you guess why??? The crud germs have found their way to our house. 3 appointments to the doctor yesterday and 1 trip during after hours indicated 2 with viral/sinus crud and 1 with a strep type infection that produced mammoth hives, fever, sore throat---Then today, hubby came home from a golf game with 101 temp....Looking forward to a fresh week with hopefully, well bodies and eager minds. On the bright side, while sitting with my youngest, I worked on some embroidery for a big project that must be finished by November 9th...It is a reward to work with our hands and to hold our loved ones close!! May the germs not find their way to your house and may this week be happy and healthy for all!!