Happy Thanksgiving!

"Let us thank God for it all," they said. "It is He who has made the sun shine and the rain fall and the corn grow." So they thanked God in their homes and in their little church; the fathers and the mothers and the children thanked Him."Then," said the Pilgrim mothers, "let us have a great Thanksgiving party, and invite the friendly Indians, and all rejoice together."

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS

I am so grateful that you take the time to drop by now and then to say hello and leave such warm thoughtful comments. Thank you!I hope you all get to spend Thanksgiving with those you love.

Doilies

I don't know what it is about them that make me smile, that make me think of my childhood and bring me visions of a warm and cozy home.

If I told you that I have them all over my home and in every room, would you believe me?


In the Kitchen:

In the hallway:

In the bedrooms:

In the Bathrooms:

I have collected doilies since before I got married, and most of them were made by my grandmothers which make them even more special to me.

In the living room:

In the dining area:

And while I was taking these pictures the mailman came by and dropped off this goody.

I LOVE Gooseberry Patch cookbooks and collect them, so you won't imagine how excited I was to see this huge cookbook. I haven't had a chance to look through it much but you can bet that I'll be using it to write up my menu for next week.

I think a crocheted doily gives your home that little extra special touch, makes it more inviting to others. What do you think?

Do you have doilies yourself or is that something that you are not particularly into, which is fine, not everyone has the same taste and some may not be interested in doilies and quilts and crafty stuff around the house.

I think I need more though, time to pull out my crochet patterns and take a peek. I may just find another great one to make.

Another place you can usually find them for really cheap is Goodwill and other Thrift Stores.

Happy Homemaker Monday!

<a href="http://familycorner.blogspot.com" title="hhm by jasnicmommy, on Flickr"><img width="150" alt="hhm" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3362/3608789834_4d1bac04e0.jpg" height="150" /></a>

The weather in my neck of the woods:
It's only about 40 degrees right now, so kinda chilly. I think this is my favorite time of year in Arizona.


One of my simple pleasures:
Watching the sunrise


On my bedside table:
Lots of Jane Austen Books


On my TV:
Stargate SG1 Season 3
Legend of the Seeker Season 2
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Eyre


On the menu for tonight:
Beef and Bacon Pinwheels


On my To Do List:
Mop and sweep
Laundry


New Recipe I tried last week:
The Best Enchiladas Verdes. No I mean, the BEST.ENCHILADAS.VERDES. You have to try them, they are delish.


In the craft basket:
Wrist warmers and crochet birds
Granny's Twinkle Stars


Looking forward to:
Thanksgiving - I'm watching what I eat this week otherwise I won't be able to pig out for Thanksgiving LOL


Homemaking Tip for this week:
Pour a tablespoon of salt or baking soda down the drain. Followup by pouring a kettle of boiling water. The boiling water would solve the clogging part of your problem while the salt or baking soda would remedy the foul odor coming from the drain pipes.

There you have it. Simple and no-cost way to remedy a smelly and clogged kitchen sink drain.


Favorite Blog Post of the week (mine or other):
I got no blog reading done last week, shame on me.


Favorite photo from last week:

My Christmas Village




Lesson learned the past few days:
A huge one.....that your kids are just that......KIDS. They're not always going to tell you if something is wrong or if they don't feel right. Follow your instincts and if you feel that something is off, go with it, chances are, something IS.
Nicholas never complained about not seeing well and it turns out he is Farsighted, I had no idea but on a hunch I decided to take him in to the eye doctor and get him checked out, I'm glad I did.


On my Prayer List:
Family and Friends


Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
Hebrews 13:5

Still here!

You may think that I disappeared again but I really didn't, I'm here, just haven't had much of a chance to hop on my laptop and blog.

We had quite the busy week mostly revolving around my children going for eye exams and both needing glasses, which took this mama by surprise......well maybe not with Jasmine, the past few weeks she had been complaining that she was having a hard time seeing the board in the classroom and sometimes things up close were a little blurry too.

Since I was taking her, I decided that it was now or never for Nicholas as well.

Turns out she is Nearsighted and needs glasses, no surprise there, I was expecting that, but what I wasn't expecting was that when I took Nicholas in, who has never complained about anything and mind you just a month or two ago they checked their eyes at school and everything was fine......I was told by the doctor that he is Farsighted and needs reading glasses.

Well I'll be darned, I had no clue.

So yes, we've had a busy week with eye appointments and school activities.

I've spent my days running from place to place, feeling quite discombobulated and in desperate need of rest and relaxation, though the thought of Thanksgiving in just a few days is enough to keep me positive.

With that thought in mind, I have started religiously exercising on my Wii fit, because you know....Turkey day is coming and I don't want to feel bad about the ginormous amounts of food that I will be ingesting for days. I'm sure I'm not the only one either. *tee hee*

Have you started Christmas decorating yet?

Would you think me crazy if I told you that I have everything but the outside decorations up?

It just makes me smile to see the Christmas tree and my Christmas village all lit up at night, brings me visions of hot cocoa and candy canes, the birth of Jesus and white snow.





Tell me that doesn't make you smile???

Today is the first day that I've had a chance to sit down and spend some time online, browsing and getting ideas for the holidays. Like these adorable little pies in jars, which I'm thinking would be a great gift for the school teachers, and look at the cutest tags to include from Lollichops.



I've also been eyeing these adorable Grandma Twinkle Stars....yep, I think there are some coming up for Christmas. If you want to check out the tutorial, head on over to The Royal Sisters, such a neat blog.

Starting the next few days, I'm going to be posting alot about Handmade Christmas ideas, baking and sewing and crochet and knitting, ways to save money, sales, decorating etc etc.

If you have anything to contribute, I would love to hear it. With the economy the way it is, everyone is cutting back and trying to find a more inexpensive way of celebrating the holidays, I say we put our heads together and help each other out.

Right now though, I have to leave you because believe it or not......I have a Pumpkin Pie in the oven. *hahaha*
I'm trying a new recipe and what better way than to actually *try it* before you fix it for Thanksgiving? I am not complaining and neither are the little munchkins around here who've I've caught with their fingers in the Pie Mixture. Tsk Tsk Tsk.

Slow Cooking Thursday!

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

Image Credit: Monsoon Spice

Creamy Garlic Broccoli Soup

This full of flavor and aroma, crockpot recipe, is also full of veggies. Onions and potatoes have been added, and the blended potatoes, are what gives this hearty soup, it’s supreme creaminess. Started stove top, and finished in th slow cooker, this simple recipe is simply divine.

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 90 mins

1 1/2 pounds broccoli flowerets
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large Onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 to 2 large potatoes
1 quart chicken broth, or beef broth
salt and pepper, to taste
dash red pepper, crushed
1 cup half and half
dash ground nutmeg
bacon bits


Step 1:

Saute onion and garlic in butter until the onions become transparent. Add chopped potatoes, broccoli, broth, salt, pepper and red pepper. Heat to boiling and simmer for about a half hour.
Step 2:

Pour the mixture (about 1/3rd at a time) into the blender and pulse six or seven times for each batch. Place blended soup in crockpot and add half and half and nutmeg. Heat on low for another half hour and then let sit until dinner. Taste for seasoning; garnish and serve warm, not hot.