spiced apple cider

this is one of my favorite recipes! Passed down by my wonderful mom of course :)

Hot Apple Cider

3 parts 100% Apple Juice-depending on how much you want to make, I use at least one bottle
1 Part 100% Cranberry Juice
3 Cinnamon Sticks
1 teaspoon of cloves held in either a coffee filter or a tea ball
Sugar to taste

Combine ingredients in large pot on stove or crock pot. Heat on high heat until simmering then reduce heat to low and cover. Let steep on low for at least one hour. When cider is spiced to your taste remove the cloves (you can remove the cinnamon as well, but I usually leave the sticks in).
If the cider is too tart you can add a bit of sugar (I usually end up adding a little less than 1/4 cup of sugar). Serve while still hot! Can be stored in the fridge, and drank cold or hot!

holidays are coming

so the holidays are just around the corner! Don't forget that there is a wonderful web site called Etsy out there to meet your holiday shopping needs. It is a wonderful idea to buy hand crafted items for Christmas instead of something from a department store! Here are several of my favorite shops on etsy...of course mine is #1 :). Also, keep in mind that you can usually request custom items from sellers on etsy, all you have to do is send them a message and see what they can do!

http://southerncharmcrafts.etsy.com

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7541630

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7400794

finding God in fiction

So I was reading our book club book which is "The White Company" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. (you know the guy who wrote Sherlock Holmes). Well, this has been an all time favorite novel of mine since I was in middle school. It is all about the hundred years war and knights and ladies in distress. Well reading it as an adult I have been finding many things in it that I missed as a child. My favorite quote that I have ran across is this:

"A man is but a beast as he lives from day to day, eating and drinking, breathing and sleeping. It is only when he raises himself, and concerns himself with the immortal spirit within him, that he becomes in very truth a man. Bethink ye how sad ...a thing it would be that the blood of the Redeemer should be spilled to no purpose"

how true this is! Without the spirit of God in us we are falling into nothingness. God made us to seek Him and to follow Him in our lives. Of course we all make mistakes and none of us have a perfect Christian life, but if we are aware of the spirit living inside of us, if we are aware of God in our lives ,then we are realizing our full potential as Christians and can work towards becoming better followers of Him. How sad it would be if the blood of the Redeemer was spilled to no purpose! How sad it would be if we turned our backs on God and stopped trying to better our walks with Him. How Sad it would be if we forgot what He did for us and the life He offers!!

What an awesome reminder that you can find God anywhere. He will find ways to speak to you even when you are reading a book you haven't picked up since middle school. AMAZING!
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Company )

fall moons

There is just something about walking outside on the first cold night of the year and looking up into a clear, crisp sky. The stars look brighter, the moon looks brighter, and the air smells cleaner. How awesome that fall has arrived and it looks like we are actually going to have a cool fall this year in NC. Well, needless to say being in the house all day, and walking around outside at night time with Lela brought out the inner hippy and I wrote a poem...yes...I wrote a poem. Go ahead and laugh, but here it is. Of course, the grammar may need a little help (it has, after all, been four years since poetry class).


There are people dancing on the moon
Hand in hand through the misty white light,
The night surrounds their mirth and merriment
As they go round singing to their gods and angels.

boredom can lead to productivity

moms surgery

well, on her long road battling breast cancer my mom came to the obstacle of having a double mastectomy and she conquered it! Today is her first day of recovery and she is doing great. She is tired and sore but she has been up walking around and wants to do everything for herself, but of course we cannot let her do that!
God always seems to bring good things out of the bad ones and this time he brought my aunt and my grandma. I was able to see my grandma a few weeks ago at her fiftieth wedding anniversary but have not spent any quality time with her in years. It has been great to be in the same house with her and to spend time with a woman who I admire and who is so sweet and strong at the same time. God really shows us in the older generation that we can either let our struggles turn us bitter or we can let them mold us into stronger Christians and we can show sympathy to others facing struggles. I know that my grandmother and my mother have both let their struggles turn them into better Christians. They have let their struggles teach them how to rely on God and his love and also how to sympathize with others going through hard times. I hope that God will teach me how to take these hard times and turn to Him for my guidance and strength. I hope that I can be an inspiration and a help to others who face hard times and that I can have more sympathy for others around me who are struggling.

Etsy

so recently i have gotten into making crafts and thought i would try my hand at Etsy! So, here is what I have so far:

http://southerncharmcrafts.etsy.com