A Blessing Way
When my pretty little niece Emily was expecting her very first and much prayed for baby daughter–after 5 boys!–a good friend threw her a well deserved baby shower…but with a twist.
In the invitation we were told that this was not just a baby shower but would be a “Blessing Way” as well. I’d heard of them before, but had never been to one. Wanting to know more, I searched online to better understand.
Turns out that while a typical Baby Shower is a way to help parents celebrate and prepare for the new baby coming into their lives, a Blessing Way is a ceremony designed to honor the new mother and the change her life is about to make. The idea too, is that she is surrounded by the women that she loves most in the world as they offer her their love, support and blessing as she moves into this sacred place.
Isn’t that lovely?
My favorite part about this event was that we were all asked beforehand to choose a bead or token of some type with the new mother in mind. Something that made us think of her in some way.
We would have the opportunity to give her the bead and explain our choice at the party–if we wanted to. Some friends chose to write a personal note rather than tell everyone.
So much love went into each choice that just talking about it made many of us mush-heads cry. It felt like a gratitude ceremony, not only to the new mom–but for mothers and women everywhere that have blessed our lives.
At the end the beads and tokens were all strung into a beautiful necklace for mom to keep and treasure for always.
It is such a beautiful thing to be able to put your hopes and wishes into an actual physical thing that will remind a dear one that she is so loved, so blessed and so valued every day of her life.
If you’d like to know more about a Blessing Way–you can do what I did and go HERE. There are plenty of ways to add extra tenderness and meaning to a Shower for a new mama in your life.
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Some of you came very close to guessing our amazing road trip destination, but alas no one has guessed correctly yet.
Destination Quiz Hint: The site we are visiting is in Nebraska…and we are taking a car. Ok, that’s actually 2 hints. Lucky you! Click here to guess.
Halloween Bash
At my sister’s place this time of year—there’s this big, old party. You’re welcome to come!
Here, the ghouls gather for games.
Along with Glinda and her broken bubble…
and a quick moving blurry gnome.
There are always lovely snacks…
and a very messy donut race…
with very pretty cheerleaders.
If you’re fast enough, you may spy a Wood Sprite…
a treat-eating Spidey…
a zoo keeper and her pet monkey…
and a completely mummified….ahhh….mummy.
Be sure to try the “Bog Slime,”
listen to a few really spooky stories…
and don’t forget to choose a prize from the basket.
“The Sock-muda Triangle”
And hey…you never know–you may even find your lost sock.
Cheetoes–a Completely Honest Taste Test
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So many choices…so little time. What’s a Cheetos lover to do?
We decided to have a taste test to discover the winner for the “Very Best Cheetos in the World” contest.
In the running were…
Contestant #1
Regular Cheetos
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Contestant #2
Crunchy Cheetos
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Contestant #3
Twisted Puff Cheetos
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Contestant #4
Crunchy Mozzarella Cheetos
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Contestant #5
Fiery Hot Cheetos
Sorry, I don’t have a picture of the bag, because it melted through the table and kitchen floor and is no doubt on it’s way to the center of the Earth…or Hades…
and rightly so.
Next, we gathered the troops and force fed them the different styles of Cheetos and gave everyone a ballot.
Here is what we came up with…
#1– Regular Puffs–which in my unbiased opinion, are the only true Cheetos on the face of the Earth–received exactly 1 vote for 1st place. Everyone else thought it should be in 3rd or 4th place. The heathens.
#2– Crunchy–received 5 votes for 1st place even though they are deep fried and very, very bad for you, and 1 vote for 4th place.
#3 –Twisted Puffs–received 1 vote for 2nd place because they were really spongy and cheesy and good and 1 vote for 3rd place and 5 votes for 4th place, because my family doesn’t really understand the connection between puffy Cheetos and true unadulterated wisdom.
#4– Mozzarella –received 1 vote for 3rd place and 3 votes for 4th place and 1 vote for 5th place because they didn’t really taste like anything. It was weird.
#5– Fiery –received 6 votes for last place, because they were hot and nasty and deserve a cold and watery grave, except they also got 1 vote for 3rd place because Jacob’s singed tongue lava meter is all screwed up. He actually liked them.
So, as you can clearly see, Cheetos PUFFS are by far the best Cheetos in the land–even if more people actually voted for the crunchy ones.
It’s my test, and I can cheat if I want to…cheat if I want to…cheat if I want to.
(No animals were harmed in the making of this taste test…well, except for Beany who tried to eat #5 and caused a 3 alarm fire in his throat. But he’s fine now and his tongue has almost grown back.)
Sausage Cheese Balls
My daughter Lyndi found this recipe in a magazine ad for Jimmy Dean Sausage. It was so quick and easy. You can make them ahead and refrigerate or freeze them. We enjoyed them plain–but I bet they’d be fabulous with marinara or alfredo sauce.
Sausage Cheese Balls
Ingredients:
2 pkgs. (16 oz. each) Regular Flavor Jimmy Dean Pork Sausage
1-1/2 cups all-purpose baking mix
16 oz. (4 cups) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl; stir well. Form into 1” balls. Place on ungreased baking sheet; bake 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven; cool 5 minutes before removing from pan. Serve with cocktail forks or toothpicks.
| Sausage Cheese Balls |
Ingredients
- 2 pkgs. (16 oz. each) Regular Flavor Jimmy Dean Pork Sausage
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose baking mix
- 16 oz. (4 cups) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl; stir well.
- Form into 1” balls.
- Place on ungreased baking sheet; bake 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven; cool 5 minutes before removing from pan.
- Serve with cocktail forks or toothpicks.
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