You know Christmas is coming....

Of course, we are all aware of the coming of Christmas.  We are well aware of the calendar, and if we don't pay any attention to the calendar, there are many other occasions when we are made aware that this is the Christmas season!:-)

In this post, I will show some of the signs I have seen that are foretelling the arrival of Christmas.

Chrismon Tree

One of the first things I notice about the Christmas season is the Chrismon Tree that is in our church sanctuary.  It doesn't appear  until the first Sunday in Advent.  I apologize for the position of this picture.  It was difficult to get in a spot that would show the Chrismons, yet not get someone else who was walking between the tree and me!  In the background, hanging from above, is one of our Advent banners.

In the Narthex

This large Nativity scene is on display in the Narthex of our church.  The huge stained glass window provides a wonderful backdrop for the display.

Another tree at church

There are several large areas at our church that have decorated trees on display.  This is in one area of the Narthex.

There is much about this season that brings excitement for all of us.  More about that in the next post.

Thank you for reading.  I appreciate  your comments.

Time for the announcement....

Happy Thursday to everyone!  Has this been a good week for you? 

As promised, today is the day for the announcement of the winner of my very first giveaway.

Is it time?

According to the clock, it is time to draw those names!

There they are!

Well, finding the correct amount of light seems to be very tricky!  I dropped the names into a Santa canister.

The lid is on!

We gave the can a few good shakes!

More light here.

The Husband drew out this name - - - - - -

Out of focus.:-(

Lisa!  You are the winner!  If you will email me your contact information, I will have the calendar in the mail to you. 

Thank you to those of you who left comments about your baking.   I like to hear what you are doing.

The next post - signs of Christmas.

Thank you for reading.  I really appreciate your comments.

Everybody loves chocolate....

Well, perhaps not everybody, but lots of people do.  So, this post will give you another recipe to add to your chocolate collection.

I watched The Pioneer Woman demonstrate these cookies on her TV show last year, probably about a year ago.  She certainly had a way of making them appear to be simply done.:-)  I didn't have a lot of trouble with them, either.

Cooling on the rack.

CHOCOLATE COOKIES
2 sticks butter, softened slightly
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces white almond bark
4 ounces chocolate almond bark
Assorted candies, sugars, etc. for toppings; crush candies to create small pieces.
- Cream butter and sugar.  Add egg and vanilla; mix to combine.  Add flour, cocoa, and salt, mixing until dough comes together.  Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate two hours.  Roll and cut with rectangle shaped cutter.  (I used a diamond-shaped cutter). 
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
- Bake cookies on ungreased cookie sheet for 7-9 minutes.  Let set on pan for a couple of minutes, then remove to rack for cooling.
- When cookies are cool, melt almond bark, working with one flavor at a time.  When melted, dip part of cookie into bark, then into the topping.  Place on parchment-lined tray until cool.
- Size/shape of cookie cutter will determine number of cookies you have.

Cookie assortment.

Are you able to see how they look when they are finished?  I certainly hope so!  They are very tasty!:-)

An announcement is coming in the next post!  I hope you will return to see who wins the giveaway.

Thank you for reading.  I appreciate your comments.

Cookies!!

Here we are at the first Tuesday in the month!  This is the day I provide lunch for the adult day care program at our church.  Let's begin with the most important part of the meal first - dessert!:-)  I have baked an assortment of cookies.

Oatmeal cookies with dried cranberries.

Annie Hall's Butter Cookies!

Chocolate cookies a la Pioneer Woman.

A finished assortment.

So - a recipe must be in order for this post.  Susan Branch has the recipe for Annie Hall's Butter Cookies in her book "Christmas from the Heart of the Home" on page 82.  They are truly delicious, and I'm sure you will want to try them.  The recipe is also available on her website.  So, the recipe that I will choose for today's post is the one for the Cranberry-Orange Oatmeal Cookies.

CRANBERRY-ORANGE OATMEAL COOKIES
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 Tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups oats
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- Mix butter and brown sugar until creamy.  Add egg; mix well, then add milk, orange zest, and extracts, mixing well.  Combine flour, baking soda, salt , and oats.  Add to creamed  mixture.  Fold in cranberries and nuts.  Drop teaspoons of dough onto ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges start to turn golden brown.  3 dozen

I am not sure about the source of this recipe.  I think I may have copied it from a newspaper clipping as it has been neatly re-written onto a recipe card!  Most of my newspaper clippings haven't made it to that stage yet.:-)

One more day for that giveaway!  You will need to go back to the post for Saturday, December 1 in order to enter.

Next post - Of course!  You want to hear about the chocolate!

Thank you for reading.  I appreciate your comments.

Great for seasoning....

Happy Monday, everyone!  Did you enjoy your week-end?  It was a very nice one for us here.

One thing we enjoyed was a visit to our favorite herb farm's Christmas Open House.

Beautiful berries!

Decorative touches.

Tree on the porch.

Wreath on the door.

Mistletoe! $2.00!

Herbs hanging from the rafters.

Door to the greenhouse.

Do you know what this is?

It was a very nice day to be taking pictures of outside features.  The place was nicely decorated for us, and there were some tasty treats served.  Even the door to the greenhouse was decorated!  I like to see the herbs hanging from the rafters!  And - I even came home with some mistletoe!

Now, do any of you know what the last picture is?  I'll will bestow the title of "Queen of the Season" to the one who correctly tells me first!:-) 

Next post - did someone say something about cookies?

Thank you for reading.  I appreciate your comments.

Advent....

Ready.

 

 

"There was evening and there was morning:  the first day." - Genesis 1:5b

This is the first Sunday in Advent.  In the Advent wreath, the first candle is either purple or blue.  This is the day to light it.  It is a symbol of Christ our Hope.

With the theme from our Advent By Candlelight message, are we "waiting" or "watching?"  The scripture found in Mark 13:32-37 is recommended for reading today.

I send along wishes for a blessed Sunday to each of you.

A mission, an anniversary, and a giveaway....

Happy Saturday to everyone!  Does everyone have some exciting week-end plans?

The most recent member of our family, our Country Man son-in-law, has some really different plans.  He leaves today for a week-long mission trip to Honduras.  He is one of a team from our area, and we surround them with our prayers and support for their mission.

It was exactly one year ago today that I "entered" blogland.  My very first post was on December 1, 2011!  In celebration of that one year anniversary, I have a giveaway to announce. 

Susan Branch!

This mini-wall calendar by Susan Branch will be on its way to someone when the deadline arrives on next Wednesday, December 5, at 5:00 P.M. Eastern time.

To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on this blog telling me what was the last thing you baked.  I will announce the winner on Thursday morning, December 6.

Thank you for reading.  I appreciate your comments.