Christmas Cookies

Another one of my favorite things...

Christmas Cookies!!

When we moved into our house 13 years ago, we started a tradition, I baked lots of cookies with the help of my husband :) and we delivered them to our neighbors on Christmas Eve. I should say that my husband and the kids delivered them. Now that the kids are older, it's hubby on his own in his Santa hat. The territory has enlarged too, we've expanded to other parts of the lake community we live. HOWEVER, this year I have NO OVEN!!! Hello, how do you bake with NO OVEN!!! So, the tradition will have to take a break this year and there will be no cookies. We have found ourselves apologizing to the various cookie recipients and telling them there will be no cookies. I will keep you posted on the oven chronicles as we figure out whether to fix it or get a new one. Anyway, the following is a recipe of one of the cookies I put in the cookie bags for the neighbors, enjoy!!!!

Secret Kiss Cookies

1 cup Soft Butter

1/2 cup Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

2 cups Flour

1 cup Walnuts (Chopped)

Powdered Sugar

Hershey Kisses

Cream butter, sugar and vanilla. Blend in the flour and walnuts to form a dough ball. Form about 1 tsp of dough around a Hershey Kiss and bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes or until golden (do not overbake) While the cookies are hot, roll in powdered sugar and let cool.

YUMMY!!!!!!!

The pic below are simple cutouts, you can use ready made dough like Pillsbury and roll and cut your favorite shapes and decorate. This is fun to do with kids.

Happy Baking.

11 days till Christmas...

The Nativity Story Trailer

A few more of my favorite things...

Christmas Movies

A Charlie Brown Christmas - Love this, have it on DVD, who can not sing along to Hark the Herald Angels Sing at the end

Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer and Frosty - Classic cartoons still on TV today

The Preacher's Wife - One of my favorites, see clip above from the movie which features Whitney Houston at her finest, it is said that when they made the movie and this part was filmed, the presence of God was so evident in this scene that director Penny Marshall was amazed!! She sings I Love the Lord/Joy to the World in this clip. Makes you want to shout Hallelujah!!!!! One of things I miss about being in a Pentecostal church, sometimes you just have to SHOUT unto the Lord.

The Nativity Story - If you have not seen this film, you must!! Beautifully written and directed. The Wise Men's role (they were astronomers who understood the signs in the sky, hence, following the North Star) is like the Bible come to life.

Joy to the World, the Lord has come!!

Christmas Songs

16 more days until Christmas!

I decided to blog about all things Christmas and a few of my favorite things...

Christmas Music - Here is Third Day performing Oh Come all ye Faithful

Enjoy!

12 days of Christmas

On the first day of Christmas, my true love sent to me;

A partridge in a pear tree...

The Origin of the Twelve Days of Christmas

You're all familiar with the Christmas song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" I think. To most it's a delightful nonsense rhyme set to music. But it had a quite serious purpose when it was written.

It is a good deal more than just a repetitious melody with pretty phrases and a list of strange gifts.

Catholics in England during the period 1558 to 1829, when Parliament finally emancipated Catholics in England, were prohibited from ANY practice of their faith by law - private OR public. It was a crime to BE a Catholic.

The songs gifts are hidden meanings to the teachings of the faith. The "true love" mentioned in the song doesn't refer to an earthly suitor, it refers to God Himself. The "me" who receives the presents refers to every baptized person. The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In the song, Christ is symbolically presented as a mother partridge which feigns injury to decoy predators from her helpless nestlings, much in memory of the expression of Christ's sadness over the fate of Jerusalem: "Jerusalem! Jerusalem! How often would I have sheltered thee under my wings, as a hen does her chicks, but thou wouldst not have it so..."

The other symbols mean the following:

2 Turtle Doves = The Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens = Faith, Hope and Charity, the Theological Virtues
4 Calling Birds = the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings = The first Five Books of the Old Testament, the "Pentateuch", which gives the history of man's fall from grace.
6 Geese A-laying = the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming = the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
8 Maids A-milking = the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing = the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords A-leaping = the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping = the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming = the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed

Very interesting...

People I admire...

Tim Tebow - Quarterback, Denver Broncos - Standing firm in his faith

Jackie and Sue - Dear friends and the most generous people I know

The people who make up the TV show Extreme Home Makeover - Giving back to those less fortunate, I cry every time I watch the show

My husband - Always doing what it takes to support his family

There are many people I admire but was thinking about these tonight.

Who do you admire? Can you name three and why?

Admire - to regard with high esteem

Quote of the Day

I really like A.W. Tozer, he really got it, he would not recognize Christianity today. A prophetic voice that still speaks after all these years.

"The old cross slew men; the new cross entertains them. The old cross condemned; the new cross amuses. The old cross destroyed confidence in the flesh; the new cross encourages it." -A.W. Tozer

Aiden Wilson Tozer
Born	April 21, 1897 La Jose (now Newburg),Pennsylvania, USA
Died	May 12, 1963 (aged 66)
Occupation	pastor, author
Religion	Christian and Missionary Alliance(C&MA)
Spouse	Ada Cecelia Pfautz