Monday, December 28, 2009

We have a NEW winner!!!

Congratulations to Mrs. Pear!!!! She is the winner of the book A Life That Says Welcome by Karen Ehman!!!!

Mrs. Pear, please email me as soon as possible with your mailing address so that Mrs. Ehman can send you your autographed copy of her wonderful book!!!

Congratulations!!!!!

Friday, December 25, 2009

Monday, December 21, 2009

And the winner is.......

Update: kimlessig, please email me by this Sunday, December 27th, so that I can get your mailing address. If I do not hear from you by then, I will need to draw another name.



Congratulations to......

kimlessig said...
This looks like a really nice keepsake book.
Hope to win.

I am confident you will love this book, kimlessig!! Please email me with your full name and mailing address so that Mrs. Ehman can get the book mailed to you!!

Merry Christmas!!!!

Friday, December 18, 2009

Corn Chowder and a GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!



Mmmmmmm... nothing warms me up better than a bowl full of soup, stew or chowder. Today's recipe isn't just any old regular corn chowder, however. It's from an awesome book I just finished entitled A Life That Says Welcome by Karen Ehman- a book about hospitality and welcoming others into your home and your life.

Mrs. Ehman kindly shared some of her favorite recipes in her book. Corn Chowder is just one of them and it is DELICIOUS!! All four of us LOVED it!!! Let me get to the recipe...

Corn Chowder
In a large pot combine:
4 cups chicken stock (or 4 cups water with bouillon cubes to taste)
6 cups diced, peeled Yukon Gold potatoes
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced celery

Cook over medium heat for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Then add:
3 T butter
1-2 cups finely chopped leftover ham
1 1/2 cups leftover corn
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese

Just before serving, add:
8 ounces sour cream

Thin with a little milk, if needed. Stir well. Serves 8-10.


YUMMMMMM!!!! Warm and delicious AND my family loved it. What can get better???

Okay... so there's the recipe.... NOW for the GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For everyone that leaves a comment before SUNDAY NIGHT, DECEMBER 20th, before 8:00 pm EST, you get ONE entry.

If you blog about this on your blog, too, then you can be entered TWICE!!!!!

What is the giveaway???? Mrs. Ehman is graciously giving an AUTOGRAPHED copy of her wonderful book, A Life That Says Welcome!!!!







Y'all will be so encouraged and challenged with this book! I love it and I am sure y'all will, too!!!!

Please enter right away!! Sunday night will be here before know it!!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Southern Living at Home...


My real life friend, Melissa, at Desiring to be a Godly Woman, just started selling Southern Living at Home!!!

If y'all have never seen any of their products, please go visit her website. WOW!! Lovely things for your home, for sure!!!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls...

I know I'm not the only one around the web to have discovered Pioneer Woman's cooking site called Tasty Kitchen. There are some seriously YUMMY looking recipes on there!!!

Recently I made the Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls and they are just that- perfectly easy!! They are definitely the easiest rolls I have ever made AND they were tasty, too!!!

Here they are before rising and baking. And remember, the recipe says to roll these into smooth balls. But hey, I had a 3 1/2 year old helper and, well, this is as smooth as they get. (And I'm pretty sure they were extra tasty because Elizabeth was helping! smile!!!)



Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls...

Prep Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 15 Minutes
Servings 24
Difficulty Easy

Ingredients
1 cup Warm Water (105F To 115F)
2 packages Active Dry Yeast
½ cups Butter, Melted (1 Stick)
½ cups Sugar
3 whole Eggs
1 teaspoon Salt
4 cups To 4 1/2 Cups Unbleached All-purpose Flour
Additional Melted Butter (optional)

Preparation Instructions
Combine the warm water (I usually go to 115F) in a large bowl. Stir in the yeast and let stand for 5 to 8 minutes for a good proof. Stir in butter, sugar, beaten eggs and salt. Beat in 1 cup flour at a time (I use a wooden spoon) until dough is too stiff to mix (some flour may not be needed). Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 4 days in a lightly greased bowl.

Grease a 13- x 9-inch baking pan (I use butter). Turn out chilled dough onto a lightly floured board. Divide dough into 24 equal-size pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth round ball; place balls in even rows in the prepared pan. Cover and let dough balls rise in a warm location until doubled in volume, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Bake until rolls are golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Brush warm rolls with melted butter, if desired. Break rolls apart to serve. You can obviously make clover leaf rolls from this recipe.

And here is the end result. Seriously yummy dinner rolls!!



Sunday, December 13, 2009

So sorry...

To all of you that comment on my blog as "anonymous", I am so sorry, but I have had to stop allowing anonymous comments. I've gotten TONS of comments with links to businesses, places of ill repute, even just plain old weird comments. All of these I have had to go back and delete. I am simply tired of going MANY times a day and deleting the comments. Perhaps in the future I will be able to allow anonymous comments again, but for now, I will not.

I am very sorry. I do pray that all these spam comments stop posting on blogs. So sad.

His,
Mrs. U

Friday, December 11, 2009

Table manners...

(photo found here)

Since the Christmas season is upon us and many of us will be invited to other homes for meals, I thought it might be of interest to read up on table manners.

Thank you, Mrs. S., for sharing this on your blog!!

Table Manners

1.) A meal begins when the host or hostess unfolds his or her napkin. Guests should then do the same. Place your napkin on your lap, completely unfolded if it is a small luncheon napkin or in half, lengthwise, if it is a large dinner napkin. The napkin rests on the lap until the end of the meal. The host will signal the end of the meal by placing their napkin on the table. Once the meal is over, you too should place your napkin neatly on the table to the left of your dinner plate.

2.) When your host or hostess picks up their fork to eat, then you may eat. Do not start before this unless the host or hostess insists that you start eating.

3.) Once used, your utensils, including the handles, should not touch the table again. Always rest forks, knives, and spoons on the side of your plate or in the bowl.

4.) Pass food from the left to the right.

5.) Always say please when asking for something. Be sure to say thank you to your server or host after they have removed any used items.

6.) Taste your food before seasoning it.

7.) Do try a little of everything on your plate.

8.) Don't blow on your food to cool it off. If it is too hot to eat, take the hint and wait.

9.) Keep elbows off the table. Keep your left hand in your lap unless you are using it.

10.) Do not talk with your mouth full. Chew with your mouth closed.

11.) Do not blow your nose at the dinner table. Excuse yourself to visit the restroom. Wash your hands before returning to the dining room. If you cough, cover your mouth with your napkin to stop the spread of germs and muffle the noise. If your cough becomes unmanageable, excuse yourself to visit the restroom. Wash your hands before returning to the dining room.
This rule is especially important as we are able to enter a bad flu season!
12.) Whenever a woman leaves the table or returns to sit, all men seated with her should stand up.

A few General Rules

1.) Arrive at least 10 minutes early unless otherwise specified. Do not arrive earlier as your host or hostess may not be ready for you yet.

2.) Turn off your cell phone or switch it to silent or vibrate mode before sitting down to eat, and leave it in your pocket or purse. It is impolite to answer a phone during dinner. If you must make or take a call, excuse yourself from the table and step outside.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Challenge for TONIGHT!!!!


Anyone up for a challenge tonight? Why not take a few minutes and do the 27 Fling Boogie from Flylady!!!!


27 Flling Boogie....

We do this assignment as fast as we can. Take a garbage bag and walk
through your home and throw away 27 items. Do not stop until you have collected all 27 items. Then close the garbage bag and pitch it. DO NOT LOOK IN IT!!! Just do it.

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

A job for a "big girl"...



Yep, that's my sweet Elizabeth carefully putting all the cleaned silverware back in its proper place. She LOVES to do this!! She is a "big girl" now with a big girl bed, wearing panties (even during nap time!!!) and getting big girl jobs to do around the house. She couldn't be happier!!!

Friday, December 04, 2009

Gingerbread Scones...


Thanks to Heritage Schoolhouse, we had a yummy breakfast this morning of Gingerbread Scones and piping hot coffee. Mmmm! Definitely the best way to start off a day!!!


Gingerbread Scones
8 servings

2 cups flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold butter
1/3 cup molasses
1/4 cup plus 2 T milk
1 egg, separated
sugar

Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; set aside. Combine the molasses, milk and egg yolk until smooth; stir into the flour mixture just until moistened. Turn the dough onto a floured surface; knead gently 6-8 times. Pat into an 8 inch circle; cut into 8 wedges and place 1 inch apart on a greased baking sheet. Beat egg white until frothy; brush over scones. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 400° for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan to wire rack. Serve warm and enjoy!

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