Where's the craftiness?

I know. Slacker, right? Well, I will have several things to show after Christmas. I can't just display Christmas gifts on the blog before they have been gifted, can I?

In the meantime, Brigitte, Anna, and myself had a cookie bake-a-thon/exchange on Sunday. Here is Anna's recipe for White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread.

Brigitte's recipe for Fleur de sel Chocolate Chip Blondie's. And my recipe pick for Chocolate Orange Biscotti with Almonds.

All delicious!!

This Thing of Ours: How Faith Saved My Mafia Marriage by Cammy Franzese

Author Cammy Franzese was a young woman who grew up with a passion for dancing. This passion not only led her to a small part in a movie, but it also led her into the arms of the movie’s producer, Michael Franzese. Her story chronicles how she met her future mafia husband, their life while he was incarcerated, and how through it they came to serve the Lord.

If you are interested to know more of the story of Cammy’s husband and all that he was involved in regarding the mafia, you will not get it from this book. This book is from the perspective of his wife, and she does not go into much detail regarding those facts. I would have liked to know more about the husband’s change and desire to follow Christ, but this was not his story. I did enjoy reading about how her mother was such a godly woman and encourager through her life and that because of her mother she came back to the Lord and began serving Him. In all, this was a short read and an interesting story of how one family came out of difficult circumstances and has chosen to live their lives telling others how God changed them.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://booksneeze®.com/> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Cliques, Hicks, and Ugly Sticks: Confessions of April Grace by K.D. McCrite

Categorized as a children’s book, this story truly belongs to middle school girls. It follows young April Grace Reilly through the many of adventures of being a pre-teen girl; from cliques at school and an annoying older sister, to worrying about her momma and trying to help a family friend put a Christmas pageant together.

Although I believe the first few chapters were difficult to get into, I very much enjoyed the rest of the book. This is probably due to the fact that this is book two of the series. Those who have read book one will probably have a much smoother time transitioning into book two. The character of April Grace was quite entertaining and engaging. She is more of a leader instead of a follower, and I often found her take on things quite amusing. The author shows a family that is very giving and loving, whose faith in God is ever present. The rural setting of the story also played a large part in my enjoyment as I can somewhat relate. All in all, I believe girls of middle school age would greatly enjoy this book and following the confessions of April Grace.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://booksneeze®.com/> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Baby Book

A friend at church just recently had her first baby; a boy. Brigitte found this great idea in one of my sewing books. You make a baby book using felt and fabric with some embroidery and applique. It was a little time consuming, but very easy with minimal machine sewing. Thinking of the animals we wanted to use and sewing them in was the fun part. It truly was a lot of fun and a great idea for an easy hand made gift.

Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo

Heaven is for Real is a thought provoking book about a little boy who during the course of an emergency surgery, goes to heaven and comes back. The father is the author and tells of his family and their life before the miraculous event, their struggles during that time, and then after when the story of their son’s experiences begins to come out. You see a family struggle with loss and fear, and then see how God worked in their lives through those things.

You can choose to believe this families story or not to believe it. After reading it, I choose to believe it. This family was being bombarded with injury and illness and then their son’s gravely ill state, and God spoke to them through their son and showed them that He was there and that He had not left them or forsaken them through that time. Yes, it showed them a glimpse of heaven, but it also showed them Christ’s love for us. I loved that their son repeatedly told them how much Jesus really loves the children. I believe that this book can especially minister to someone who has gone through a miscarriage, as it greatly ministered to me. You don’t have to be a big reader to get through this book. It is not long and the message is simple. This is a must read.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Pascal

My friend Anna's daughter, Stella, turned three a couple of weeks ago. She loves the movie Tangled. I happened to have a pattern for a chameleon in one of my knitted toys book, so I made Stella a Pascal from the movie. I put a little note with him that said "Rapunzel wants you to take care of him for her". Anna said that she liked him and even had to take him to bed with her. Yeah!

My Evening with Amy Grant

A couple of weeks before my birthday back in August, Tish emailed me and asked what I had going on the weekend of the 14th of October. Ummm, nothing that I know of considering that is two months away, I said. She couldn't wait until my birthday, so she proceeded to send me an email that explained her inquiry. Tish had bought us two FRONT ROW, CENTER STAGE seats to see AMY GRANT in concert at the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas!!! For those who don't know, I LOVE Amy Grant! I have since middle school. It all started when my parents my parents started letting me listen to Contemporary Christian music. Every since I could remember, I was only allowed to listen to children's type music, "elevator" music, and Southern Gospel. Now, I am not bashing Southern Gospel because I love it to this day. Kevin can even testify to how I light up when they occasionally sing a good ol' timey, foot tappin' Southern Gospel tune at church. It's just good stuff. Anyway, I remember mom taking me to the Christian bookstore where I bought Amy Grant, The Collection. I loved it and I proceeded to buy most every older and new Amy Grant cassette tape over the years (until I finally got a CD player and started buying CD's). Who doesn't like El Shaddai, Sing Your Praise to the Lord, and Angels? In fact, this is my all time favorite album of hers and always will be. Not only is it just good music, it also takes me back to the church youth group during my middle and high school years and so many fond memories. I wasn't allowed to listen to New Kids on the Block and such like others my age. There weren't any bands or artists that I idolized back in my pre-teen/teen years. Just let me blast some Amy Grant out of the boom box.

So now you know why I was so excited. I'm not a big concert goer. I was able to attend quite a few Christian concerts while I was working for KVNE in Tyler. It was great, but I've really never had much of a desire to attend another concert, except for one of Amy's concerts. I have always said that I wanted to see Amy Grant in concert; if I could go to any concert, that would be the one. Tish loves Amy Grant also and she made my dream come true! A friend of mine at work said, " You have a great friend." I know, she's the best!!! Thank you dear friend for making my dream come true!

Here is the view from our FRONT ROW seats. Sorry, but I still cannot get over this. We were literally a few feet from her. The Dallas Symphony Orchestra accompanied about half of the songs she sang and it was quite beautiful. The Meyerson itself is gorgeous. I can see why Tish and Shane love to go often.

Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures once it had started. Bummer. Tish did manage to sneak one picture with her iPhone. When I get the picture from her I will post it.

It was an amazing concert and Amy sounds just the same in person and she does on her CD's. I've always loved her unique voice. She sang some of her older tunes such as Sing Your Praise to the Lord, El Shaddai, and Stay for a While, and she also sang quite a few of her newer songs. We all stood for an encore at the end. Everyone started to sit down when Amy came out to sing "I Will Remember You". She said we could stand and sway to the music if we wanted. There were only a few people well over to the left side of us who remained standing. Tish leaned over to say that she was standing too. After all, she paid good money for the tickets, and Amy said we could stand. So we did. We stood and swayed to the music and Amy looked us right in the eyes and smiled.

Weeding the Jackson Way

This is what happens when you let a weed get completely out of control. You have to use a truck and chains to get it out. We don't mess around with weeds.

Mutant plants and storage boxes...

I think our yellow summer squash got into some kind of mutant ectoplasm or something.



This is the only thing that has come off of that plant all summer. Kevin looked it up and it either was too close to another similar plant and cross-pollinated or something, or it stayed on the vine too long and got all bumpy. It said that it was still edible, but I think I'll pass.


On the crafty front... Brigitte and I got together recently and made these super cute storage cubes.

I got the pattern out of 1, 2, 3 Sew by Ellen Luckett Baker. The project was slightly frustrating. We got all of the pieces cut out and started sewing the interfacing when my sewing machine went bonkers. I believe it is a tension problem in the bobbin case. Grrrrr! We had to stop mid-project and pick it back up again a couple of weeks later at Brigitte's mother-in-law's house. She has a sweet sewing machine that makes beautiful, even stitches... sigh... Anyway, we were super proud of ourselves for reading and deciphering the pattern ourselves. I bought enough of the fabric to make two; very ambitious of me. We'll see if that happens. Right now I will be happy with my one and maybe find something else to do with the leftover super cute fabric.

Ascent from Darkness by Michael Leehan

How does someone come out of a life of serving Satan, to then become a follower of Christ? This author knows from personal experience. In this book you will read how Leehan’s life spiraled downward, what led him to serve Satan, his life in the grip of darkness, and how he turned his life over to Jesus Christ.

This book made me squirm quite a bit. How could someone go to this extreme? To me it is hard to imagine. Leehan makes it a point to let you know he is not trying sensationalize anything or bring a shock factor; he is just stating the facts, sharing the depth of depravity his life had become. He also shows how God was continually pursuing him. I love how God placed so many people in his life to minister to him, and I love that they didn’t give up on him. This is definitely not a light read, but is a good reminder that Satan does exist; that he is the prince of darkness. Let us not forget to “walk in the light as He is in the light.”

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Restaurant Love

I had the privilege of eating at two very good places this week. On Wednesday I had lunch at a Conocco gas station. Yes, you did hear me right. The ladies and myself finally made the trek over to Watauga, Texas just north of Fort Worth, so we have lunch at Chef Point Cafe.


They were featured on Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives several years ago. I've heard great things about the place from numerous people, and they were not lying! I got the monte cristo sandwich, but the duck is supposed to be the best. We also shared a piece of their famous bread pudding... feeling faint... There was so much more that I wanted to try. It took us 15 minutes just to decide what we wanted. I will definitely, absolutely be going back!

Then on Saturday I finally was in the vicinity of In-N-Out Burger. They will be building one in Arlington and Irving in the near future, but I just had to have one to tide me over in the meantime. I hadn't had one since the last time I was in California in 2005. Way too long... There were about 20 people in the drive-thru line in front of me. No sweat. I could be patient. After all, I've waited 6 years.



Just like I remembered in all it's juicy goodness. Now, I was not at all impressed with the fries. Maybe it was because they were cold when I got them, but they definitely left something to be desired. I wasn't too upset though. My main goal was to eat that burger. I did, and it was delicious.

Austin

Hmmm, where to go on a girl trip that is within driving distance, yet a fun and entertaining getaway from North and East Texas??? Austin of course! Actually, I have never spent any kind of time in Austin. I've only been there for a wedding and didn't even spend the night. Tish on the other hand had been there on several occasions and she agreed that it would be a good place for us to go (despite the scorching temps).

We had a great time! Lots of shopping on S. Congress, but mainly lots of eating. We ended up eating at two wonderful cafes for breakfast on various mornings. The Kerbey Lane Cafe and the Magnolia Cafe are both wonderful places to have a great breakfast (try the pancakes that are as big as your head).

Directly down the road from the Magnolia Cafe is Mozarts Coffee Roasters, a great coffee shop right on the lake with great coffee and yummy sweets.

And if you go to Austin, you must try Gourdough's (just take a look at that menu). It's a trailer that makes the most decadent doughnuts that you've ever tasted. I got "The Puddin'". Good heavens! A cream filled doughnut with cream cheese frosting, sliced bananas, and crushed vanilla wafers. It was so rich I could only eat half in one sitting.

But my all time favorite place we visited was Man Bites Dog. I realize that this does not make me sound like any kind of connoisseur of food, but I just love a good hot dog. LOVE them. Tish had the Abe Froman (did you catch the Ferris Bueller reference). This was a classic Chicago dog in all its pureness. Tish is excited about digging in.

I had the Al Pastor Dog. Get this... bacon wrapped pork sausage dog topped with pickled red onions, cilantro, pineapple, and chipotle ketchup! I can't even express how amazing all those flavors were together.

My mission is now to write the owners of that establishment and beg them to build one in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, preferably Arlington.

Sewing Class

A couple of weeks ago, Brigitte and I attended a sewing class lead by Anna Pham and her friend Britt. Anna makes the cutest stuff that she sells on her Etsy site! It was challenging, but so much fun! I had never used interfacing before nor had I ever made anything quite this technical. Check out our cute little zipper pouches that we made!


Mine is the second one from the left with the cute little reddish flowers. The sewing bug has bitten me again, so definitely more sewing projects in my future!

Love You More by Jennifer Grant

Love You More is a touching look at the author’s story of adopting a child internationally, while at the same time being a wife and mother. Besides adoption, the author also discusses infertility, miscarriage, and parenting. Grant offers insight into the international adoption process and offers advice and tips throughout.

Having suffered a miscarriage myself and also being in the midst of the adoption process, this book was comforting to me in a sense. Grant is an excellent writer. She tells the story from the beginning of her married life and continues with the birth of her children, a miscarriage, how she and her husband came to the decision of adopting, the process, and life after adoption. She offers you insight into her deepest, and at times most honest thoughts and feelings. I appreciated that she included her personal relationship with Christ and how it factored into her decisions and thoughts. I laughed and I cried. I definitely recommend this book to those who have at any time considered adoption. It will give you the opportunity to look into one family’s life and see the dreams, struggles, and how it changed them and the life of the adopted child forever.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Pink Banana Squash

Well, we finally picked our squash. The plant ended up only yielding two, but boy aren't they two fine looking squash!

They are supposed to keep just fine for several months in a cool dark place, so I am going to try keeping them in the pantry and just check to make sure they aren't rotting. If I need too, I can cut them in chunks and freeze them. I am hoping they will hold out till the fall and I can roast them. Yum!

And here's a pic from the 4th of July. Kevin got a little smoker happy.

A turkey AND a brisket! Goodness gracious!

The Blessing by John Trent and Gary Smalley

Wow! What an applicable book! The Blessing is about showing unconditional love to the people in our lives. Mainly it is written from the perspective of a parent to a child, but it can be applied with any relationship in our lives. There are five essential elements that the authors touch on: meaningful touch, a spoken message, attaching high value, picturing a special future, and an active commitment. Essentially, how do we give the blessing? What does that look like? They also speak on when the blessing doesn’t happen and how to reverse the curse.

Trent and Smalley show how giving the blessing is scriptural and back it up with plenty of references. They also give lots of personal examples on how people give and receive a blessing and how a blessing can be withheld. I believe that this is a must-read book for everyone; whether you have children or not. This can be applied to your relationship with your parents or your spouse. What did I learn from this book? To be more deliberate in my relationships in what I say and what I do. To let those I love know that they have value; not only through spoken words but through meaningful touch. I loved this book and recommend it to everyone I know! Two big thumbs up!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Ma and Pa

I came across this pic the other day of myself and Kevin and just had to post it...



It makes me giggle every time I see it. What a pair. See the similarity...

Growin' Things

As I have mentioned before, I am not much of a green thumb. Fortunately, my husband can get most things to grow. We tried some new fruits and vegetables this year along with some tried and true favorites.



This is a pink banana squash plant. Um, it has kind of taken over the deck and some of the furniture. Thi picture was taken a week and a half ago. It is actually quite a bit bigger now.





This is the beginnings of a pink banana squash. I'm not sure that either of us read the seed packet very carefully when these were planted. Evidently these can get to be over 4 feet long and over 30 pounds! As of yesterday, this squash is over a foot long. I have to admit that it has been kind of fun watching it grow. I only have one other squash on the entire plant that is growning, but I guess that's okay considering how much you get out of each one.

Our other new plants this year are yellow squash, habanero peppers, and watermelon. We have already harvested all of our onions and about half of our tomatoes.

The Story of the Bible by Larry Stone

I must say that this is a great book! The Story of the Bible is an informative and page-turning history of the Bible. It starts with the beginning (quite literally) and ends in present day. Mr. Stone also covers the many translations that the Bible has come through.

This book is well written and to the point. The illustrations and pictures throughout the book are absolutely beautiful. I especially enjoyed that I could pull out life-sized reproductions of Bible pages and scrolls. Should I never have the opportunity to visit those beautiful Bibles in person, I can at least have an idea of what the originals look like. I greatly appreciate all the information that was put into this book. Sure, I could have pulled out some of my husband’s books from seminary that are 2,000 pages long and really, really in-depth, but this is a great condensed version of those that gives you tons of information in 96 pages. It is a great reference book to pull off the shelf at any time and a wonderful book to loan to a friend that wants to learn more about the Bible and its history through the ages.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Blanket for Tristan

My friend Brigitte will be having another baby boy soon, so I wanted to make him a blanket. I decided to pick something a little different than just a regular knitted baby blanket pattern. Don't get me wrong, I love those kind of patterns but sometimes you just want something different. When I saw this pattern I knew that Brigitte would like it and the color even goes with Tristan's room.




I really like the way the trees and the cabled border came out. I love reading knitting charts and with this piece you definitely have to keep your eyes on the charts. This pattern actually can be knit quite larger. I made the smallest size out of three. I may make the largest size one day for myself and keep it in the living room.

Just in time for... er, summer?

I love knitting socks. Yes indeed. The first pair I ever knitted was probably about 4 years ago. Since then I estimate that I have knitted about 25 pairs of socks, and of those I have given 1/3 away. But not these! (I know you are all thinking... Wow! Jenn has gone from pasty white legs to a nice tan. Nope. My lovely Puerto Rican friend is the owner of these legs and kindly agreed to model for me.)




It's not that they took a lot of time. In fact, these were a relatively quick knit due to the fact that I wasn't using a skinny sock weight yarn. They didn't even cost me anything. I used the leftover yarn from a sweater I made and posted about during the summer. The reason I love these socks is because they are like 2 socks in one! They are double thick because of using so many colors and carrying the strands of non-working yarn on the wrong side of the work. They are extra warm and toasty. Perfect for when the weather gets cold... in like 8 months or so. I got the pattern from this book:




Lots and lots of great sock patterns! Guess I better get started on another pair...

Spice is Nice

Brigitte, Anna, and myself recently had an enjoyable evening cooking some new dishes. As an appetizer we made panko crusted portobello fries with a spicy horseradish remoulade dipping sauce. Yummy!

For the main dish, we made tikka masala. It was a wonderfully flavorful dish made with chicken and cooked in a sauce of tomatoes, spices, and cream. I am a huge fan of heat in my food, so the spiciness was most welcome. I would absolutely make this again; especially considering that we have an Indian food market just a couple of miles from the house, so the spicess are readily available.

We also made some potatoes and rice with saffron, but I can't remember the name of those sides. All in all, it was a great meal with great friends!

Cupcake Heaven

A couple of weeks ago I had a very nice lunch in downtown Grapevine with my Administrative Assistant friends from work. I wasn't the one to schedule the lunch, so far be it for me to decide the restaurant. I mean, isn't that the responsibility of the scheduler? Well, no one wanted to make any suggestions, so I HAD to speak up. Afterall; someone had to take the reins! The ladies give me a hard time for being somewhat high-maintenance when it comes to going out to lunch. I'm kind of selective. I don't want to go somewhere that I'm not in the mood for. Anyway, we ended up at Tolbert's. They are known for their chili, which is pretty darn good by the way. I ended up eating a little on the lighter side with grilled chicken. I must confess that I had an alterior motive for going to downtown Grapevine. It was all a part of my plan. Mwah ha ha! I desperately wanted to stop by Legacy Cakes just up the street. This bakery was just opened recently by Megan Rountree from the TLC show Next Great Baker. Unfortunately, we do not have cable, so I was never able to see the show. What intrigued me was that Megan lived in my hometown of White Oak when she was recruited for the show. Afterall; I had to support this girl that lived in my hometown! Let me say, she is so sweet and nice and came out and met us as we had the painstaking challenge of picking what cupcake that we wanted. I chose chocolate peanut butter. Chocolate cupcake with peanut butter frosting... divine!

Torgo

I knitted this giraffe for Macy for Christmas. She has named him Torgo.




I'm really happy with the way he turned out. And I have heard that Macy really likes him! That was the goal, so I am pleased!

The Liturgical Year by Joan Chittister

The Liturgical Year is meant to be an informative piece of non-fiction on the liturgical year in the Christian's spiritual life. The first several chapters are devoted to what the liturgical year means to a Christian and how it is played out in their everyday lives. The bulk of the book deals with feast days, such as Advent, Lent, and Holy Thursday.

First, I would like to say that I am writing this review from a Protestant perspective. This book uses a Roman Catholic liturgical calendar. I was looking forward to learning more about the feasts and Holy days that I know so little about. I did learn many new things from this book, but I must admit that I was left wanting a little more history and background behind the feasts and Holy days. I also found it to be a bit repetitive, but I know that was intended to drive the point home. I was challenged by this book in a way. I was challenged to remember that in our traditions and our celebrations, to always be aware of why we are celebrating and why we are remembering; to not let ourselves just go through the motions.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”