B-Movie Star

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving - we did. It was so great to be with everyone, my in laws came, my brother and his four kids, my dad came - my mom got sick that day and couldn't make it, and then Colleen's kids were here. It was a wonderful houseful of people. The food all turned out good - everyone ate enough and we talked and laughed and had a nice time.  Later on, my brother took all the kids to the movies - he's a glutton for punishment isn't he?  My in laws had to leave before it got too late, and we spent the evening napping and watching television and eating leftovers - isn't that what you're supposed to do on Thanksgiving?

Prior to Thursday it had been a difficult week. My sister, who I've mentioned has MS, has been getting worse and worse.  She is on a program of chemotherapy to try to help stop the MS symptoms and when she came back from her last session of treatment, she just really went downhill quickly. She was living alone in an apartment, but she was falling a lot. Last week the "meals on wheels" people who deliver her a noon meal everyday found her laying on the floor - she had spent the night there because she couldn't get back up. They called my dad and he and another guy helped get her up.  That night my mom asked my brother to go by and check on her and again, she was laying on the floor so my mom went and got her and took her to her house. That next day she asked me to go over in the morning and help her get dressed so I went over and I woke her up. She sat on the edge of the bed and just seemed "out of it" sort of in a daze, so I told her maybe she needed to wake up a little bit and I would come back in  few minutes to help her out of bed. I went out to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee and when I went back into the bedroom she was laying on the floor.  I was able to help her roll over and set up, but I couldn't lift her so I had to call David and he came home from work and we got her out to the living room and sat her in a chair.

She was doing really well prior to this, as far as walking goes. She was getting around without a walker or cane - which she has used occasionally.  Then in just a day she was doing worse than ever.  She fell several more times at my parents house - once in the bathroom which scared my mom, of course. So they took her to the hospital for an evaluation and then on Wednesday she was admitted to a type of nursing home where she can get round the clock care.  I am relived, because I know that she will have people watching out for her and making sure that she eats and doesn't fall, but it's also one of the most heartbreaking experiences I've ever been through.

If it was just her physical decline, it would still suck, but I think I could handle that. The worst thing about this disease for my sister is that seems to be taking her mind. She is confused a lot. She doesn't remember things.  It's like a person with alzheimer's - except that she's only 40 years old! This disease has taken away her ability to talk.  She doesn't speak very well and when she does, it's short and as few words as possible. I think it's because she has a hard time accessing in her brain the words that she wants to use. It's so awful to watch.  I look into her eyes and it seems my sister isn't there.

I wish I had a magic wand to make everything better for her.  She's lost everything - her husband lives in another town so he can keep working at his job to make sure she has health insurance. Her children live with me and my parents, she can't work, she can't speak, she can't walk, she can't live alone, she can't drive . . .  it's so awful for her, for her children, her husband, the rest of her family and friends.  And there's nothing that anyone can do really. It's a huge pile of suck.

I don't think my sister is ever coming back, and I'm more sad about it than I can put into words. It's like grieving for someone who isn't gone yet.  I want to remember all the wonderful things about my sister - the things that her children won't know - I have to remember for their sake, so I can tell them that she wasn't always this person that they see now. I miss my sister that was my best friend. The person I could always rely on to be my cohort. The one person that would put up with my crap - and the one person who wouldn't put up with my crap. I miss the person I would talk to about everything. I miss the person who knew all about me - who lived my childhood with me. The person that I could say one word to and they would know EXACTLY what I was talking about.

I'm not trying to be selfish - I know that her children and her husband have lost more than I have. Next to them, my complaining seems pretty petty, but I don't mean to sound that way. I'm just saying that it hurts a lot to see my sister disappearing down a well of disease and misery and not be able to do a damn thing about it.  It hurts to lose someone. It hurts to see someone you love suffering.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Gabby and I discovered these delicious enchiladas - we didn't have any enchilada sauce on hand so we used Heinz Chili Sauce and YUMMY! These are some fantastic enchiladas - I highly recommend trying them!

Angela's Awesome Enchiladas

Ingredients

* 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cut into chunks
* 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
* 1 1/4 cups sour cream
* 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 1 small onion, chopped
* 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
* 1 package mild taco seasoning mix
* 1 bunch green onions, chopped, divided
* 1 cup water
* 1 teaspoon lime juice
* 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 5 (12 inch) flour tortillas
* 3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
* 1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce ( I use Heinz chili sauce)
* 1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives (optional)

Directions

1. Place the chicken in a large pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart. Set the shredded chicken aside. Meanwhile, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
2. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
3. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.
5. Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of Cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 25 minutes.

Popularity: 2% [?]

I have seen some fabulous wreaths on the internet, and all of them you can make for yourself! Which one do you like best? I just can't decide!

This first wreath is made from paper - the tutorial to make it is at The Red Thread

Another really lovely paper wreath is from Razzle Dazzle Crafting - I love the texture on this one:

This charming rag wreath made from strips of fabric comes from Create Studio - this would look so cute with a rustic theme Christmas!

Instead of cloth, how about making a lovely wreath out of cranberries! So beautiful! There is a tutorial to make yourself one at The Idea Room

Another wreath that looks good enough to eat - BUT ISN"T! is this fun gumdrop wreath from A Pretty Cool life.

Here is another really fun and easy wreath from Better Homes and Gardening - this would be so easy to make, and it looks so adorable!

Lastly, one of my favorite ones - because my grandma used to have one of these and I always loved it, a Christmas bulb wreath. Eddie Ross shows you how to make this one and it's a lot more easy than it looks! His turned out just gorgeous!

Popularity: 23% [?]

For Thanksgiving I decided to make my own flower arrangement for our centerpiece. I was able to buy a few bundles of fresh, fall colored  flowers from the local market. I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do, but I knew those colors would look good with whatever else I ended up doing.  I totally believe in supporting your local florist - they always make such beautiful creations, and I love to buy arrangements from them whenever I can afford it. This year, I just thought it would be fun to do it myself.

When I first got home I filled a large bucket with cool water and commercial flower food. If you do a lot of flower arranging yourself you can buy flower food at your local craft supply store or floral supply store. Sometimes florists will sell it to you as well. I filled the sink with water and opened my bundles of  flowers. You will need to trim the stems of the flowers. It's important to do this under water because the stems will "suck" and if you are cutting them in the open air they can suck air into their stems, creating an air bubble that hinders them from drinking water and of course, this causes them to die more quickly. When you cut them stems you should also use a sharp knife, such as a paring knife, and cut the stems at a slight angle. Using scissors is not recommended because  it can crush the stems shut and this will also hider the flowers from drinking water. The only exception to this is if you are cutting woody stems like forsythia or lilac - those stems need to be crushed a bit.  Does this sound too complicated, it's not! You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

After I trim the stems I put them into the bucket. It's best to let your flowers sit in the cool water and drink for a bit before working with them. If you are going to be making a lot of arrangements or corsages or something, try to keep your bucket of flowers in a nice cool location.

Since I was making a centerpiece I bought some bricks of floral foam. There are two kinds of floral foam - one for fresh flowers and one for silk flowers - make sure you get the right one for your project. You can also buy floral foam at craft or floral supply stores.  I soaked the brick of floral foam in a bucket of water and commercial flower food for a few hours, but check the instructions on yours for details on that.

With floral foam you can create an arrangement in almost anything - if it will hold water, you can make an arrangement in it. I used a narrow bread basket - obviously water is going to leak through that, so I put some small plastic containers in the bottom and filled those with floral foam. The containers I used are like bowls that you use to mix paints, but you can use whatever you have on hand - Tupperware, old butter tubs, anything like that will work. I cut the foam to fit into the containers and then I was ready to work.

I started by using greenery to make a bit of a "base."  I also think about sort of  "hiding" the foam as I'm working, and the greenery base helps to do that.  When you're making an arrangement you may want to look at a photo to give you some direction if you feel like you aren't sure what you want to do. I just sort of "winged it." When I was adding flowers I just worked slowly, adding flowers throughout the entire bricks of foam. It's better not to concentrate on one area because you may end up with an off balance arrangement. It's okay to be asymmetrical if you mean to, but on accident - well, you'll probably be disappointed with your results.

While I was working, I liked to try to keep the flowers different heights, and sort of sprinkled about "naturally." It's also important not to cut your flowers too long or too short. It will probably take a bit of practice to get the hang of this. If you cut them too short your arrangement sort of sinks into the container, and too long doesn't allow the flower to drink too easily from the foam.  It's good to step back occasionally and look at your arrangement from a bit of a distance so you'll keep the entire arrangement in your mind as you work. Another good tip is to imagine in your mind a center point where all the flowers start from - this helps to keep your arrangement "flow" in a pleasing manner.

Don't get frustrated if you don't make a "masterpiece" the first time you arrange flowers. It takes lots of practice. Sometimes local florists or community centers offer flower arranging courses. There is so much to learn - so many techniques and theories - it becomes really addictive once you get interested in it.  I'm sure that when a professional florist looks at my arrangement, they can see all the problems, but I had a lot of fun creating it and everyone said it looked nice - so that made me happy!

Popularity: 12% [?]

Here is a down-loadable Advent Calendar for you! I've made one with a list of activities, and also a blank one so you don't like the activities I've chosen, you can fill it up with activities that your family enjoys.

To construct the calendar, all you need to do is print both pages of the calendar onto card stock. Take an x-acto knife and cut each numbered box on THREE sides to make a little "door." Then glue the page with the activities onto the back of the numbered "doors" so that when you open a numbered door you can read the activity on the second page.

Have fun counting down to Christmas!

Page One of the Free Downloadable Advent Calendar

Page Two of the Free Downloadable Advent Calendar

Blank Advent Calendar

Popularity: 8% [?]

These are a light, but delicious Brownie - chocolate and mint - what's not to love? They're a favorite around our house, and a nice treat on a cold winter evening.

Junior Mint Brownies

Cooking spray
1/4 cup butter
32 (about 3 ounces) creamy, small-size mints in pure chocolate (such as Junior Mints)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 large egg
1 large egg white

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Coat bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.

Combine butter and mints in a 2-cup glass measure; microwave at high 30 seconds or until soft. Stir until smooth, and set aside.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife. Combine flour, soda, and salt in a bowl. Combine sugar, cocoa, egg, and egg white in a large bowl; beat at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended. Add mint mixture; beat well. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean; cool completely on a wire rack.

Popularity: 1% [?]

I think Pineapple Upside Down Cake is the easiest and one of the most delicious cakes to bake. I also think it goes perfect with Thanksgiving! The caramelized glaze that tops the cake keeps the cake so moist - and it looks so beautiful after baking while you didn't even have to decorate it or frost it - BONUS!

The way I learned to make Pineapple Upside Down Cake was in a cast iron skillet, but if you have a large cake pan I'm pretty sure it will work in that as well.

PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

1/4    cup butter or margarine
2/3    cup packed brown sugar
9  (or however many will fit into your cake pan attractively)  slices pineapple in juice (from 14-oz can), drained
9 or so maraschino cherries without stems, if desired
1 1/3    cups  all-purpose flour
1  cup granulated sugar
1/3    cup shortening
1 1/2    teaspoons baking powder
1/2    teaspoon salt
3/4    cup milk
1    egg

Heat oven to 350°F. In a large skillet or cake pan, melt butter in oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over melted butter. Arrange pineapple slices over brown sugar. Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice.

In medium bowl, beat remaining ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter over pineapple and cherries.

Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.  Store cake loosely covered.

When my mom makes this cake she sometimes adds crushed pecans or walnuts to the butter and brown sugar mixture.  She has also made this with sliced peaches instead of pineapple rings - and wow that's delicious too! In fact you could probably top this cake with whatever fruit or berries is your favorite and it would taste fantastic!

Popularity: 2% [?]

This week I have been feeling so down. There is a lot of stress going on in my family - and I know that everyone has their stress, so I'm trying not to whine. Then on Tuesday I heard the news report about authorities discovering the body of  the five year old North Carolina girl, Shaniya Davis, that was reported missing. I couldn't help it, I've been crying about it all day. I just get so tired of people being so evil. I just don't understand this.  Maybe I'm crazy to be so affected by a person that I didn't know personally, but when I saw her photo on television when she was first reported missing,  she just looked so sweet. I just can't imagine how anyone would want to hurt a little child. I wish I could just go around and scoop up all the kids who are suffering and bring them home with me.  Unfortunately, I would need a really, really big house.

There was something else I thought about today too, this girl's mom. The person who is accused of selling this little baby, my first reaction is one of disgust and anger, and rightfully so. But this anger gets me nowhere, just an endless circle of why? that never has an answer. I don't know if I can explain this right, but while I was thinking about this, it was as if  God granted me a little speck of grace to see this mother in a slightly different light.  If she is guilty of the crimes that she's been accused of, she deserves whatever punishment that society deems. I have no qualms about her being held accountable for her actions. But I also realized that she must have a huge gaping hole inside of her to be capable of such unspeakable cruelty. I feel sad that whatever is missing in her soul allowed her to betray, harm and possibly kill the one person who loved her unconditionally.

You know, when I was a young woman I never planned to be a mother. I thought of myself as all "liberated" and artsy and stuff and although I liked kids, I just never thought I would be a good mom.  After I had my daughter I discovered a secret - my daughter gave me way more than I gave her.  Everyone talks about how stressful being a parent is, how it drains your time and money and sidetracks all your best laid plans.  Sure, having kids requires sacrifice and change, but wow - it is so worth it, I can't even begin to tell you how much. I know it's not the same for everyone, but I do know that your children love you. No matter how dumb you are, how crazy you are,  how unorganized, uncool, whatever - your kids will love you like no one else.  My parents took care of foster children for many years and no matter how screwed up a kid's family was, no matter how damaging those people had been, those kids loved their parents and wanted their parents to love them back. I'm so sorry that Shaniya Davis' mom was so blinded and wounded that she couldn't see how precious her daughter was and how much her child could have healed her hurting soul if only she would have let her. If it seems I'm trying to go easy on the mom or something, please know that nothing could be further from the truth. I guess I'm just so overwhelmed by the tragedy of the situation - the tragedy ripples out like a stone dropped in a puddle, touching so many people.

I do believe that Shaniya Davis is in Heaven. I do believe that she isn't suffering anymore and for that I'm grateful, but it's still just so incredibly sad. I hope you will pray for Shaniya's father and everyone else who loved her.

I just can't get this off my mind today, sorry to be such a downer. I did see this video online and somehow it made me feel a little better - it reminded me that there still is good and innocent things in the world. There's still hope.  Let's take better care of each other!

This wonderful video was filmed in Colorado by the photographer David Neils.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Here's a nice warm for a chilly autumn day! Your guests might enjoy this for Thanksgiving too!

Apple Cider Punch

4 qt apple cider
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 oz frozen lemonade
6 oz frozen orange juice
6 whole cloves
6 whole allspice
1 tsp ground nutmeg
3 cinnamon sticks

If you use the whole all spice and cloves, tie them in cheesecloth. Heat the mixture. Stir occasionally. If you want an alcoholic drink, rum would be nice.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Every year in our area the Salvation Army has a Thanksgiving Dinner for anyone who wants to attend. Local businesses in the area donate the food and volunteers serve the meal. I'm sure in every area it's different. One year when I lived in a larger town, the dinner was held in a large auditorium and we worked on a "cafeteria style" line, serving food as people carried their tray along.  I live in a smaller area now and the Salvation Army Dinner is held at the local Applebees Restaurant. The Restaurant donates it's facility and many of it's staff members.  Not only can anyone come to the restaurant and eat Thanksgiving Dinner, there is also a delivery service. People call in and volunteers drive hot meals to their homes.

It's such a wonderful thing to be part of. Everyone is coming together -  you feel a happy sense of cammeraderie with all the volunteers and people who come to eat the meal. When we volunteer we all go as a family. I've noticed that  many people bring their children to volunteer too. The kids love to serve drinks or bus tables - whatever is needed for them to do.  It's such a great way to teach kids the wonderful message of sharing and caring for everyone in our world!

If you don't have anyone who wants to volunteer with you, don't let that stop you! I'm a pretty shy person (before you get to know me) but there was never time for that when I volunteered. You're so busy working and everyone was so friendly, it was easy to feel right at home. I think the thing that surprised me about working at the dinners is how many people are alone on the holidays. Many of them can afford to buy a dinner, they just don't have anyone to share it with. I think that's so sad, and I'm so happy that there is someplace for people to go where they won't be alone on a holiday. Many people who ate the dinners would donate to the Salvation Army, but of course this isn't necessary at all - they just wanted to help out too!

I highly recommend incorporating this tradition of  "Giving" into your own Thanksgiving Day. The Salvation Army website has lot of information about volunteering, and I'm sure that there are plenty of other organizations in your particular area that is working this holiday to share food, company and a bit of happiness with others in the community. Really - you will not regret it. We usually volunteer to work in the early morning or early afternoon and there's still plenty of time to go home and enjoy a Thanksgiving Dinner with your family!

There is nothing like volunteering to help others to make you clearly see how much you have to be thankful for in your own life!

Popularity: 1% [?]