Simple Gifts

I think I finally understand what Charles Dickens meant when he wrote, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." 

Christmas is the best of times! We all love it. 

But the last few days--the worst of times. So sad. 

My heart breaks over and over again every time I think of those poor families in Connecticut. I cannot comprehend their immense grief. It is overwhelming to think about. 

So while it does look a lot like Christmas, it doesn't necessarily feel like Christmas. I feel guilty for worrying about the little nuisances of Christmas--like shopping and wrapping gifts--when other families would love to have  those trivial concerns. This tragedy has helped remind me that the little stresses really don't matter. It's all about having those you love around you.

While trying to look for the silver lining in this tragedy, I realized something else: the holidays can actually help with the healing. People reflect the light of Christmas--and that is what we need more than anything. Kindness, acceptance, and compassion are all more abundant now than at any other time of the year. And the music! How can you not be uplifted while listening to songs praising our Savior? 

The world is full of wonderful, kind people. I see it around me every day. I am the lucky recipient of an astounding amount of love and compassion from family, friends and neighbors. The kindness of others gives me faith in mankind. 

I know this is not my typical blog post, but this is not the typical week. I didn't feel like it would be appropriate to do my normal geeky/goofiness. Thank you for letting me speak with reverence. 

I will be taking the next two weeks off of blogging for the holidays, so this is my last post of the year. But I don't want to end on a sad note; so guess what? 

I have a very special gift for each and every one of you. That's right--you are all winners this month! 

I am releasing my book early so you can have it for Christmas! It's almost like I'm wrapping a present and putting it underneath your tree. Except it can't go under your tree, unless you put your Kindle or iPad under your tree once you have the book downloaded.  (Hey, would you do that and send me a picture with my book on the screen of your tablet/smartphone/laptop/other electronic device? I would love to see it underneath your tree! Email it to me at folksinmt at gmail dot com.)

Here's my awesome cover:

And here's the awesome book blurb:

Princess Illianah does not expect her arranged marriage will end in happily-ever-after, however, she knows she will be bound to her new husband all the days of her life. But it is not until war breaks out and she is torn from her husband and her homeland that she begins to truly understand the meaning of love.

And here's the link to get your ebook for free. BUT! It is only free TODAY and TOMORROW. So don't delay! Get yours right away! And tell your family and friends to grab a copy too. It could be your gift to them.  

Thank you for your friendship BlogAway friends. You guys make the internet a better place. Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas and may your New Year be bright! 


Love, 
Me

Eat This, Not That

Everyone is well aware of this simple fact: if you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. Why then is it that we toss this rule aside during the holidays? Is it part of our subconscious desire to become more like Santa? He's super popular, kind and giving, and he can travel around the world at the speed of light. Of course we want to be just like him, even if it means having a stomach like a bowl full of jelly.

In order achieve the optimum amount of jellyness, follow this simple rule: replace everything healthy in your diet with something fattening. For example:

1. Almonds (I may have mentioned a time or two hundred how much I love almonds) are a super food, meaning that you'll find these guys on just about every list of healthy food and foods you should eat if you are trying to loose weight. So I will not be eating almonds this month. Instead, I will be eating these:

Easy Pretzel Turtles 

Recipe from Our Best Bites

With or without nuts, these babies pack that gooey crunch you are looking for, and like the recipe says, they are EASY, which means more time for you to eat. Win, win!

 

2. Cheese is low-carb, which we normally care about, but here is what we are looking for at this time of year--cheese is calcium rich, so you'll want to be sure to load up. Your bones are going to need to be strong in order to carry all that extra weight around. Instead of eating a yummy Mini Light Babybel, eat this:

Goodness gracious, great Chesseball of fire. Also from Our Best Bites.

3. Y'all know I've got a thing for Diet Coke, but I'm giving it up! Yes! I am! I need to hydrate my growing body with even more calories. My drink of choice:

Hot Chocolate with vanilla ice cream. 

I don't think you guys need the recipe for this, do you? You do? OK, here it is.

4. Rather than just eating a Hershey's Kiss, eat it on a cookie. 

Janice mentioned these cookies in her comments last week. It's not Christmas without them. Would you like the secret family recipe? (You can read it, but then I'll have to kill you.) (Is that the oldest joke in the book?) (And what book do they mean when they say that? Is there an actual book of jokes that dates jokes back to 500 B.C.?)

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Sift together:

1 3/4 cup flour

1 tsp soda (baking soda, that is. Not "pop" soda, because we're not drinking that stuff anymore.)

1/2 tsp salt

Cream together:

1/2 shortening 

1/3 cup peanut butter (do I need to say "no crunchy pb? Because really, who buys that stuff anyway?)

1/2 sugar (very important. Do not omit this ingredient.)

1/2 brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Mix creamed ingredients with dry. Shape into ball, put on parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Top with chocolate and return cookies to oven for a couple of minutes until chocolate looks melty--but not melted into a puddle. 

And here's a hint: use chocolate stars, not Hershey's kisses. The stars are so much better. And they look prettier too, see:

That's how my mom always makes them, and if you're smart, you'll do things just like my mom.

So are you guys having a hard time staying away from the sweet treats during the holidays? Will you join me in packing on the pounds? (Say yes, I will feel so much better about my rotundness if y'all are rotund as well.)

Tell us what sweets are on your naughty list. And share your very favorite Christmas treat recipe with us. You might need to talk it up and tell us how tantalizing your treat is since once again, I get to use pictures and you don't.

BTW, if you don't have the Our Best Bites cookbooks, you need to ask for them for Christmas. It's a gift that keeps giving the whole year long, especially since the following saying applies :"A moment on the lips, forever on the hips."

I'm Sensing It's Christmas

You guys: I have some very big news. It's December! (Was I the first to tell you? I hope I was.)

This month has the tendancy to get very busy, so I'm going to keep blog posts simple. I won't ramble on and on and on to make a basic point. I will be direct and simply say what needs to be said. I won't make you read endless chatter. No siree (hey, is that where Apple got Siri's name? Hmm.), I will not type just for the sake of typing. I will be brief. (Really, I will. Promise.)

So this week, let's do some word association, Christmas style. But I don't want just words; I want sentences. I will do mine first so you can see what I'm after. But I get to use pictures to help me out and you don't. Normally I would feel bad about this injustice, but I have a bad case of writers block right now and I need the pictures, so I feel no guilt. Sorry. (Wait, I guess I don't need to say sorry if I feel no guilt. I take that sorry back.) (Now I do feel guilty for being unapologetic. Sorry about that. I meant it that time.) Anywho, here's my example:

Christmas sounds like: A completely silent forest covered by a thick blanket of soft snow.

 Picture from last winter. We are the great snow-less wonder this year.

Christmas smells like: A freshly cut pine tree and cinnamon scented pine cones.

Our pine cones are cinnamon scented around here: how about yours? Picture from Imperfectly Polished.  BTW, our dog keeps taking our wreath (our only Christmas decoration thus far) off the door and chewing on it. Like she can't just go chew on a pine tree in the yard. Makes no sense.

Christmas looks like: White Christmas lights dotting the eves of a cabin, nestled in the snowy trees.

Picture *borrowed* from this site

Christmas tastes like: Red Velvet Cheesecake. Or it will taste like red velvet cheesecake. I've never had it before, but it's waiting for me in my freezer. I will have more than one slice.

Cheesecake picture appears courtesy of Schwans.

Christmas feels like: Fuzzy new fleece pajamas. 

I am comfy, here me roar. PJ's courtesy of Old Navy.

There are no wrong answers and I'm not doing a psychiatric evaluation! Just write down the first thing that comes to your mind. Here's the list again:

Christmas sounds like:
Christmas smells like:
Christmas looks like:
Christmas tastes like:
Christmas feels like:

See how easy I was on you this week?  You're welcome! :)