He Is Not Here: For HE IS RISEN!

How calm and beautiful the morn 

That gild the sacred tomb,

Where Christ the crucified was borne, 

And veiled in midnight gloom!

O weep no more the Saviour slain;

The Lord is risen; He lives again. 

Ye mourning saints, dry every tear

For your departed Lord;

Behold the place, he is not here,

The tomb is all unbarred;

The gates of death were closed in vain:

The Lord is risen; He lives again.

Now cheerful to the house of prayer

Your early footsteps bend; 

The Saviour will himself be there, 

Your Advocate and Friend:

Once by the law your hopes were slain,

But now in Christ ye live again.

How tranquil now the rising day!

'Tis Jesus still appears,

A risen Lord to chase away

Your unbelieving fears:

O weep no more your comforts slain;

The Lord is risen; He lives again.

And when the shades of evening fall,

When life's last hour draws nigh,

If Jesus shine upon the soul, 

How blissful then to die! 

Since he has risen that once was slain,

Ye die in Christ to live again. 

~ Thomas Hastings ~

1831

Cuties in the Kitchen

I'm a practical girl. I love all the pretty and cute things that call my name on the store shelves. But  when it comes to actually purchasing the cute items, I end up talking myself out of it on the basis of the fact that I don't NEED it!

This little cutie is one of those things.

 I first saw these adorable Matryoshka doll measuring cups at Target several months ago. I took them out of the box and admired them. I oooo-ed and awwww-ed over them. Then I told myself I had plenty of measuring cups and the fact that these were so cute was not a good enough reason to buy them.

A few weeks later, I was once again drawn to the little dolls when I noticed them on a clearance shelf. I noted the reduced price and decided to take them home. I have not regretted it!

The three dolls nestled inside each other are six dry measuring cups (1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, and 1 cup). When not in use, the little cuties nestle inside each other and the largest one smiles sweetly at me from her perch on my counter.

Are you a practical buyer?
What cuties have brought home lately?

Goddess of Gumbo

I've gone thru quite a transformation in the past few years. After relocating to Texas from Michigan, this Ohio-born girl had quite a bit of adjusting to do....and not just because the heat index in southeast Texas reminds a girl why she needs Jesus and just how hot hell must be, but also because every region inside the land of the free and the home of the brave has a plethora of its own distinct lifestyle characteristics. Going form a politically correct blue state to a gunshot totin' red state brings a bit of adjustment to a persons manner of thinking. Trying to move from the fast-paced northeast to the take-your-time southern Midwest did at one time try my patience to the max. After residing in Oklahoma for over a decade, I assumed the life of a Texan would be somewhat similar to that of an Okie and was thoroughly surprised at the differences between the two states. I'll stop there before I offend anyone. Anyway, I have largely claimed the northeast as home more than any other region so just imagine the humor I felt when I caught myself making southern gumbo and pecan pralines in the same weekend. 

Well I'll be.

Goddess Gumbo

1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 c. flour
1 1/2 c. chopped onions
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. chopped bell peppers
1 lb. kielbasa cut into bite size pieces
3 bay leaves
6 cups chicken broth
2 lbs. boneless chicken cut into bite size pieces
File powder

Creole Seasoning (recipe makes a lot - just use enough to coat chicken as needed and store remainder in air tight container)

Mix together:
2 1/2 Tbs. paprika
2 Tbs. salt
2 Tbs. garlic powder
1 Tbs. ground black pepper
1 Tbs. onion powder
1 Tbs. cayenne
1 Tbs. dried oregano
1 Tbs. dried thyme

For gumbo:
Combine oil and flour over medium heat to make a roux. The longer you cook it the darker it gets. I don't like it too dark, though I think true southern gumbo is supposed to be quite dark and you can cook this until it is a chocolate color if you like. I cook mine until it is more of a caramel color. Add the onions, celery, and bell peppers - cook for a couple of minutes and then add sausage, bay leaves, and chicken broth. Stir well making sure the roux is mixed with the broth. Coat the chicken with about two tablespoons of creole seasoning, enough to coat but be cautious as the creole seasoning will determine the heat and the more you put on the hotter the gumbo. You can always add more creole seasoning at the end if you want more heat.  I'm a wimp when it comes to heat. My yankee is showing...guess I need to tuck that back in. Add the chicken and simmer for at least one hour or up to two. The flavor is better the longer you simmer. Remove the bay leaves, sprinkle with file powder. Serve over rice.

Photo Friday #41 - These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Burlap and Lace Bridal Shower

In a future life (I don't really believe in reincarnation :) ), I would love to be a party planner. It is so fun to choose a theme and plan a shower, reception, or party around it! Not only is it fun to formulate a theme and see it come to fruition, it gives me great satisfaction to do so on a budget. I am a firm believer that less can be much more. Having a party that is decorated nicely doesn't necessarily mean spending a lot of money. With a little research, creativity, and craftiness, a pretty party is possible.

I was privileged to help plan a bridal shower last weekend. The son of family friends recently asked his sweet girl to marry him, and I am grateful I got to be a part of the shower of love our church hosted for them.

The hostesses decided on a decor theme of burlap and lace, and I immediately got on the wonderful world of internet to searched for ideas. Don't you love the resources we have available to us on the internet? The ability to share ideas and tutorials so easily is amazing.

After finding and pinning my favorite ideas to a Pinterest board, I created an inspiration collage of ideas.

A lady in our church agreed to make the cake. We chose the one in the collage above with frosting roses. She did an awesome job making a southern pound cake with strawberry jam between the layers. This was her first time to make the frosting roses, and we were extremely pleased with her results. The base was created by her husband out of a tree and beautifully complemented the theme.

(And in case you are wondering, we wouldn't dare step on the Goddess's territory when it comes to beautiful cakes! We live too far away from her and probably couldn't afford the 650 mile delivery.)

Adding burlap to the decor was a lot of fun. We placed squares of it on top of white table cloths at the food table and the guest tables. I also painted symbols and letters on burlap to create centerpieces and a pennant banner.

I found the idea for the pennant banner at Style Me Pretty and a tutorial for making it at My Love of Style.

Dear Lillie showed me how to use burlap on a vase to make an adorably personalized centerpiece. We added baby's breath and votive candles as well.

I really wanted to use some mercury glass at this shower too. But, when I asked the other hostesses, no one owned any. That meant I had to get my crafty on!  I followed Interiors by Kenz's tutorial to create faux mercury glass . I rounded up some unused vases from under my sink and purchased a few votives from a thrift store and painted them according to directions in the tutorial.

All of these elements helped create a sweet, romantic burlap and lace bridal shower. The food was delicious, the decorations cute and the bride-to-be was radiant.

Is a burlap and lace themed party in your future? Follow the links in this post to some great ideas, and do a search of the internet for more. So much crafting and planning to do, so little time to do it! Have fun partying!

Photo Friday #40 - Be Mine

O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth

O Could I speak the matchless worth,

O could I sound the glories forth

Which in my Saviour shine,

I'd soar, and touch the heav'nly strings,

And vie with Gabriel while he sings

In notes almost divine,

In notes almost divine.

I'd sing the precious blood he spilt,

My ransom from the dreadful guilt

Of sin, and wrath Divine,

I'd sing his glorious righteousness, 

In which all perfect, heavenly dress

My soul shall ever shine,

My soul shall ever shine.

I'd sing the characters he bears,

And all the forms of love he wears,

Exalted on his throne:

In loftiest songs of sweetest praise,

I would to everlasting days

Make all his glories known,

Make all his glories known.

Well the delightful day will come 

When my dear Lord will bring me home,

And I shall see his face;

Then with my Saviour, Brother, Friend, 

A blest eternity I'll spend,

Triumphant in his grace, 

Triumphant in his grace.

Samuel Medley, 1789

Photo Friday #39 - Oklahoma City