Chocolate Castles

One morning, a couple of years ago our preacher spoke from 1John of God’s love for us and what that truly means. During the Christmas season, we are continually reminded of that love, in that we see the nativity scenes everywhere and hear the stories of God sending his Son to earth for us. But in our everyday life, do we really stop to think of what this great love really means? That day in his sermon, he gave the analogy of when one of our children fall, do we just look down at them and tell them to “get up and get over it, the fall wasn’t that bad.” Or do we instantly bend down and scoop them up and tell them that it will be alright; That we are there and will take care of them. That is what God does for us. We are His own and He cares for each one of us. He ask us to think about the last time we truly felt God “love on us”. It was at that moment that I remembered a Christmas miracle, which happened the week I had just heard the sermon . It was one of those incidents which, at the time, reminded me that nothing is impossible with God, but I hadn’t thought about the fact that indeed, He was truly “reaching down and showing me that He loved me and cared about even the small things in my life. Here is the story:
A few weeks ago, I mailed a package to a friend for her combo birthday/Christmas present. It was a book she had been wanting and an apron that I had made for her. She is a strawberry fanatic and so the apron was made from material which had cute little snowmen and chocolate covered strawberries piled up around the snowmen. I was so excited to send these to her, knowing that it would make her so excited when she opened the package. In my haste to get it in the mail, I reused an envelop that I had received a Amazon order. Because it was a bubble envelop, when I tried to write my return address on it, it began to poke holes, so I didn’t put anything except my name. No address whatsoever. When I looked up her address in my contact list, I used the correct street address, but ended up using her old town and zip code, not the new town she had moved to over two years ago. Into the PO I ran and dropped it in the slot. I texted her and told her to be expecting a present in a couple of days. After a week, she still had not received it. At 5 am one morning, I awoke with a awful thought. It dawned on me what I had done. As soon as I could, I drove to the PO and told the guy at the window my story. I ask him if there was any way to track it. He assured me that because I had not put a return address on it, I would never see it again. That the package would go to their unclaimed mail station in North Carolina. I was so distraught. Realizing that not only was the present lost, but when was I going to learn to not do everything in a hurry. I texted my sweet friend and told her what I had done. It bothered me so much and I began to pray, telling the Lord that I knew that nothing is impossible with Him.
That week, on Tuesday, to be exact, I came home and Randy is outside. He tells me to go in the house and look on the dining room table. Asking why, he quickly tells me that the package was on the dining table. What? But how? there was no return address, how could it be here? I ran in (yes, I did run,because this was truly a miracle) and there it was. Apparently, someone had seen my name and had taken the trouble and time to peel off the top label to see where it originated. So they had returned it and here it was! Thanking the Lord for Him giving me a Christmas miracle, I began to think about what this really was. After that days sermon, it made me realize that God does give us those special little blessings to show His love for us, even during the routine days.

Also that week , Randy and I went to eat lunch. As we finished our meal, the waiter came to tell us that the couple sitting at a table over had already paid for our lunch. We were taken care of. Randy, of course, remarked, “well, shoot, if we had known that, I would have ordered the bigger breakfast”. He is such a dear. We walked over to thank them and they just said, “Merry Christmas”
This Christmas, my prayer is that I will be more conscious of God’s goodness to me. To look for the unexpected gifts that He sends to me and to also open my heart to someone who might just need to feel God’s love reaching down to them.

Last week I went to a friends house for lunch. A few friends had decided to get together at our friends house who had had knee surgery. So since she could not get out, we wanted to take lunch to her and just visit for a bit. When we discussed what to have, I had just finished the video of the cheesy potato soup so they ask if I would bring that. Of course I did and so Dena said she would bring these delectable little corn muffins, which are so great with soups. She sent me the recipe and said I could share with you. So here it is and I hope you enjoy them as much as we did. They are so moist and so full of flavor. If you don’t like green olives, switch to black. But with the weather turning cooler, you will love having these with a pot of whatever type of soup is on the menu.

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tables sugar

2 teas baking powder

1 teas dry mustard

1/2 teas baking soda

1/2 teas salt

1/4 teas black pepper

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup (4 oz) shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup chopped pimento-stuffed green olives

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 egg

Preheat oven to 375. Grease or paper-one 12 muffin cups (2 1/2″ cups)

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, mustard, baking powder, salt and red pepper in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with pastry blender until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in cheese and olives.

Combine buttermilk with egg in a small bowl until blended. Stir into flour -cheese mixture just util moistened. Spoon evenly into prepared muffin cups (pan).

Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Immediately remove from pan. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm or cool completely.

They are great with a pat of butter melted over the top.

Just wanted to post that I have started a YouTube channel with cooking videos. Have made a couple with some great recipes in the last couple days. One being Cheese Potato Soup and Antique Tea Muffins. Am not allowed to post videos on WP so please go To Sassy Southern for these great recipes! They are Butterful!!!

Well, for years I have been hearing that getting older was very hard and took lots of time during the day just to keep Dr appointments, be sure you are taking prescriptions at just the right time and then trying to keep up with your daily routine without having to lay down between doing dishes and finishing the laundry. But this week, was especially hard. I’m not use to going to the doctor. Truly, I have been so blessed with great health, even though my cholesterol is higher than how much money is in my checking account. Maybe it is all the chocolate I have eaten through the years, but while our friends are in the process of having shoulders, knees and hips replaced, my biggest concern has been being sure that I was well stocked with chocolate chips and cream cheese. As I would waddle around the grocery store picking up whipping cream, more butter and of course, Diet Dr Pepper (can’t have too much sugar you know), I felt pretty spiffy always walking around in cute little sandals, thinking to myself, “oh those poor old ladies who have to wear those awful looking shoes”. As I would walk past them, always trying to walk a little faster then they, to show what great health I was in, I would glance back at them and give them that smile. You know the one. The one that says, “I might be over 65, but I can still walk faster than you, even in my cute blingy flip flops.” Until this week…………

let’s just say that my whole self image has been shattered. All this time, when I saw on the paperwork that would come home with me the letters, BMI, I thought that it stood for Beautiful Magnificent Individual. So all these past years, I thought it was such a kind gesture that doctors would include this to still make us think we were still beautiful people, no matter our health problems. So when a nurse this week told me that I needed to get my BMI down, I ask her why. I told her that I always worked at getting the percentage higher because I thought I was trying to get to 100%….She looked at me with the strangest look. She informed me that my BMI number was showing that I was OBESE!!!!! WHAT?????? I’m OBESE!!! when did that happen? How could eating butter instead of unhealthy margarine make me obese? Randy and I have been trying to eat veggie meals at least 3 days a week, which we then knew would allow us to eat, (without worry) buttermilk pie or apple cobbler on those days. We don’t eat bought bakery items, we make all our own pies, cakes, cookies, biscotti and cobblers. We never order anything but diet drinks and use Stevia in our ice tea which we drink with our chicken fried steak dinners. We never use sugar in our tea. We have even begun a exercise program which includes parking as far away in the parking lots when we go to our favorite restaurants, Babes Chicken, Kenny’s Hamburgers and Maggianos for lasagna.

This was just a shock to my system. No longer will I assume I know what the letters stand for when the Doctors hand me their reports telling me all the things that the blood work shows is wrong with me. So I guess now, I need to order some of those pretty awful looking shoes to hold my obese self up. Obese ladies don’t look very nice in blingy flip flops. From now on, I guess I can just wear my pajama bottoms like the rest of the obese when I go to Walmart. I will fit right in. Am thinking of starting a BMI support group. Maybe just maybe, we will at least order matching T-shirts with our logo,

I am a….

“Beautiful Magnificent Individual”

until we get the next Doctor report!

Retirement & Insurance

Posted at 4:52 pm by Chocolate Castles