This is one of THOSE recipes…that you’ll take to the party and not only will it be the first thing gone, but the bowl you brought it in will be licked clean, and everyone will be groveling for the recipe. I’ve been making it for 20 years and taking it to various parties, Bunco, work functions, church functions, luncheons, tailgate parties, and it dutifully makes an appearance at most of our holiday gatherings, especially New Years, when it is lucky to eat black-eyed peas.
Today my daughter asked if I could post it on Pinterest. I suppose because she wants to pin it and then she won’t have to call me everytime she goes to the store to get the ingredients.
There are other versions of this Black-eyed pea dip out there, but what sets mine apart is the “dressing.” I suppose that their recipes are probably good….but mine is to die for — and if you know me, you know it is waaaaay out of my character to make such a statement. So, I’ll tell you the truth. I got this recipe from a coworker a long long time ago (and added my signatures), and truly, none of the others you will run across can come close!!!!! Okay, maybe close, but this one wins!!! 🙂
RECIPE
*If you have fresh sweet corn in season at your produce market, by all means cut it off the cob and use in place of the canned. A couple of cobs will do ya. And you are also welcome to make your own black-eyed peas from dried. They are actually very easy. I drain and rinse the canned ones and let them dry a little in the strainer before they go into the bowl. I prefer garden tomatoes over the tasteless storebought ones and so I often substitute sweet cherry tomatoes, chopped, of course. I especially love the little black cherry tomatoes as they have a good firm texture and fantastic taste. Also, I just started adding cilantro recently and have decided I like it – but then again I LOVE cilantro and any excuse to use it is great with me. You might even like a little squeeze of lime?
ALL MIXED UP
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HERE’S THE BOWL I SERVE IT IN
(The dip goes in the center and the chips scatter around on the brim!)
“And again He said, “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.”
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While I was praying for God’s wisdom to know what this parable is about, the Lord directed me to the notes in my study Bible. They said
“God’s kingdom is not fully manifested now. But will be reavealed in the Age to Come. And in that age it will be known to all. In the meantime, God’s works are permeating all of human society, penetrating evil and transforming lives.”
(Spirit Filled Life Bible, NKJV, Thomas Nelson Publishers).
Permeating all of human society… perhaps the three measures of meal could be the past, the present, and the future, …till it was all leavened.
The mystery of God’s kingdom was hidden in the past (from the beginning of time) in the rituals and the feasts of God’s people. It was hidden in the commandments and in the tabernacle. It was hidden in the prophesies of the prophets. It was hidden in everything God asked them to do. Even if they didn’t fully grasp the greater significance of all God asked them to do, by their doing it God permeated His message to the world of who He is, the One True God, and His kingdom to come.
When Jesus, the promised Messiah came, He revealed much of what had been hidden in the past, and revealed some of the future. And through the Holy Spirit He has hidden His kingdom in each of us, in the present age, who choose Him. The Lord is the breath of life in each of us. God’s kingdom is hidden in part from our eyes right now, but is active and working in the hearts of men. We see dimly as in a mirror now – but one day we shall see face to face. When we are obedient to do what He asks us to do, we are salt and light to the world.
In the age to come God’s kingdom will be hidden (untouchable) from those who didn’t want to be part of it.
A Woman Hid
I think it is a great mystery how mankind was created in the image of God — male and female, the scriptures say (Genesis 1:27). God gave Adam a wife from his own rib to cure his loneliness. The marriage of a man and a woman together makes them one. The man is to cleave to the woman, his help mate – his womb-man, giving them the power to bring forth life on earth after their own kind. Adam called her Eve because the name meant “life” “living.”
There are scriptures that hint at God’s feminine qualities. One of the Old Testament names of God is El Shaddai and literally means “God is my Breast.” Isaiah 66:13 say’s, “As one whom his mother comforts, So I will comfort you.” Matthew 23:37 and Luke 13:34 say, “…How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings…” This doesn’t mean I think God Almighty is a “she,” or “it,” or should ever be referred to by anything other than the masqueline pronoun HE, because He obviously set male above female in the order of things, and we should always respectfully refer to Him as our heavenly Father!!!!! But if we peek more deeply into His divine nature, I think there is a woman hidden in there somewhere. I think we are hidden in Him – and He in us.
All life on earth is hidden for a time in a female womb, so the seeds of the kingdom are hidden for a time in our dark world until the time comes for them to be revealed. Until then, it is the great commission God has given to each of us to permeate our world with the message of eternal life, till it is all leavened!
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Oh thank you Father God, I think (I hope) I understand this parable better now. Thank You for teaching me (teaching us) Your word. If I have any misunderstanding, show me my error, and teach me what is right, in Jesus’ name!
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Prayer: Lord, unless You build the house we labor in vain who build it. We believe, but help our unbelief. Unless Your Spirit is hidden in us we will have no power to live the Christian life, or love people, or share the gospel with the lost. Lord I ask that you please forgive my sins and my wayward ways. Wash them away in the blood of Jesus. And pour out Your Spirit into me today (and every day) so that I may be able do the work You predestined me to do until the gospel has reached to the ends of the earth. Direct my steps precious Jesus. Prepare the world for Your gospel. Go before me Lord, and be my rear guard. Prepare the hearts of the people here and everywhere to receive Your message. Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. It’s in Your precious name I pray. Amen.
8 baseball-sized portabella mushrooms, rinsed, and stems removed but reserved for sauce below
1 cup of freshly made bread crumbs (about 4 or 5 slices of day old white bread)
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup of a white onion, minced
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper melange
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup Chicken broth
1/4 heavy cream
Directions
I like to fry my bacon in the oven – 350*F for however long until it is crispy. I line my cookie sheet with foil, lay a rack on top, and then lay the strips of bacon down on the rack, then pop it in the oven for…mmm..depends on your altitude and humidity, but probably about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on it. (Clean up is really easy. Just let the foil cool completely and then lift off the sheet and toss. The wack will need a little scrub is all.
While it is baking make breadcrumbs by whirling the bread slices in a food processor until small crumbs. Add the cheese, minced onion, a ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp fresh ground pepper. Pulse together. Remove bacon from oven. Lay on paper towels to absorb grease. Pour a Tbsp or so of the bacon drippings into the breadcrumb mixture and whirl to mix – a couple of pulses. This should cause the breadcrumbs to stick together slightly. If not, add a little more bacon drippings and pulse again. Crumble the bacon and add to the breadcrumbs. Whirl briefly to mix.
Preheat oven to 400*F. Rinse the mushrooms and remove stems. Chop the stems and place them with a Tbsp of butter in a pan and saute until mushrooms are soft. Add ½ cup of chicken broth and ¼ c. heavy cream, a sprinkle of salt and some fresh ground pepper. Let simmer while you prepare the mushrooms caps.
Lay mushroom caps, stem end up on a foil lined, greased baking sheet. Use an ice cream scoop to measure portions of the breadcrumbs, dropping them into your hand first to kind of squeeze them together into a lump, and then press the lump into the hole of the mushroom cap where the stem was. Do this for each mushroom cap. Go back and add more breadcrumbs to each mushroom until all the breadcrumbs are used. Pop the pan into the oven and let bake for approximately 10 to 15 minutes, until the breadcrumbs are well toasted on top and the mushrooms are cooked through.
Pour the mushroom stem sauce into the food processor and whirl until blended.
Set mushrooms on a platter and drizzle with sauce. Serve.
BEFORE sauce
and WITH SAUCE!!!
***Forgive the crappy photos…I’m not the best photographer. And, excuse the paper plates. While I LOVE to cook, I loath doing dishes! =)
Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field,which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”Matthew 13:31-32 (NKJV)
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
The Parable of the Mustard Seed is the third parable told by Jesus in the gospel of Matthew. Mark and Luke tell of it also.
Mark 4: 30-32
Then He said, “To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what parable shall we picture it?It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth;but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade.”
Luke 13:18-19
Then He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it?It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”
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I’m a family history enthusiast. I began researching my dad’s roots when I was a young mother, so many years ago I don’t even want to number them. Seizing the small window of time available to me, I went to my grandma and got as much info as I could from her. We sat down with all of her old photos and I asked who the people were in them, and then we wrote their names on the backs of all that didn’t already have them, so this precious information would not be lost with her passing.
I’ve learned so much about my family, and my country’s history in the process of my research as well, and grown to love my heritage, even though there’s not anyone of any great wealth or affluence or notoriety really in the lot of us. I come from Quakers, who came to this country seeking religious freedom, and poor folk thrown into prison in England for stealing – who came to this country as indentured servants to pay off their crime. Members of my family have served this great country in every single American war, not to mention a few lesser known regional squabbles. They were farmers, chasing their dreams by land runs, and pioneering folk traveling westward-ho in covered wagons. Some chased after gold with a gold pan. Some delivered supplies to those chasing after gold. And some swung a pickaxe in the gold mines owned by wealthy tycoons. Some delivered mail. Some built railroad tracks. Some raised cattle. Some taught school and some preached. Some tended commissaries and grain elevators. It is a colorful and magnificent story – every one of them.
Magnificent and great like this story told by Jesus, because Jesus’ story tells us that as each of our families started with small seeds on a new continent and grew so big that it’s hard to number all of us now, so our Lord’s kingdom began with small seeds, sown by Him into brave apostles, and then by their works has grown into a mighty family tree that includes peoples from every tribe and tongue and race and nation – Jew first, and then the rest of us grafted in,as numerous as the stars of heaven, where the angels of God can come and nest in our branches.
Maybe you’ve been relocated to a place far from family. Take heart that our God has planted you and wants you to grow and blossom and flourish right where you are now. As long as there is a church and people of faith, you will always be close to family. Go and plug-in.
Maybe you are in the same old town you grew up in, that your parents grew up in, that your grandparents grew up in, and are surrounded by almost nothing but family. Celebrate, cultivate, love the ones you’re with. Cherish that family bond. Lift each other up. Pour your heart into the children and let them see the wonderful heritage that they have been born into. Celebrate the marriages, and the new births. God is making you into a beautiful family tree and if grafted into His family tree, is truly a magnificent thing.
Maybe tragedy struck when you were a child and the only family you had were taken from you? God will never leave you an orphan. He puts the lonely in families (Psalm 68:6). He will graft you into His giant tree with people who will love you, and welcome you, and He will bring you in to be a part of the giant family of God forever. All you have to do is ask Him in, and that tiny seed will grow from you and become a beautiful tree.
My friend, we are meant to be fruitful and multiply. It was God’s first command to His creation, and it is the great commission Jesus gave to His disciples. God created us to be physically and spiritually fruitful. It is our blessing to get to sow His kingdom into the hearts of men, and no tiny act of charity is ever too small to grow and become mighty.
Prayer:Father God, thank you for your love and your amazing grace and mercy to make a way for those of us who choose You to have a place in Your great family tree. Help us to grow, and sow those seeds forward while we are here on earth, that our branches will reach into heaven. Your kingdom come, my Lord! IJN Amen.
“Another parable He put forth to them, saying; ‘the kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field;'”
– Matthew 13:24
This – the parable of the wheat and tares – begins with a statement, “the kingdom of heaven is like…” It is the first of twelve such statments made by Jesus (mostly recorded by Matthew, but also Mark and Luke). It would be easy for me at this point to go chasing down that rabbit hole, because I am easily distracted by such statements, but I’m going to stick to the parable for a moment.
The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares
Matthew 13:24-30
“Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field;25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared.27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them.30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Mark 4:26-29
“And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground,27 and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.29 But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
Tares: the Greek word is zizania. My Smith’s Bible Dictionary says that tares are a common weed called “darnel.” Wheat and darnel look exactly the same when they are in the grass stage, before they come into ear. Back in Bible days it was mostly women and children who weeded the fields, and because the farmer wanted to get the most from his crops he wanted the women and children to wait until the wheat was fully distiguishable, so that only the tares would be removed. Lolium Temulentum (the Latin world for darnel) is very poisonous. If eaten, it produces convulsions and even death. Today darnel is not burned, but is fed to the cattle, and if any of the seeds manage to get in with the wheat they are plucked out and fed to the poultry.
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“Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.”
37 He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.38 The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one.39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels.40 Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age.41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness,42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
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In Mark’s rendition there is no mention of tares, only wheat. Mark is focused on and fascinated by the miracle of life that is in the seed, and the partnership between the seed and the earth where it is planted. It really is a miracle, isn’t it? Not just with wheat, but with all things. The life of the earth and all the living things that are in it are a miracle and a marvel. And while it is nice just to linger in that kingdom-of-God-place for a while, Matthew’s rendition points out how the devil messed up the utopia God had created and sowed tares among the wheat. Now we are in the place of waiting, until it all grows up.
I think it is important that we see who God put in charge of the weeding. Jesus tells the disciples that it is His angels’ whom He put in charge of collecting the tares (not us by the way, you’ll notice)! We may think we are doing a good thing for God, but just like Uzzahin the Old Testiment story ( 2 Samuel 6:1-7 and 1 Chronicles 13:9-12) itsnotourjob!!!! It’s our job to grow, and mature, and to put down good strong roots for ourselves, and to respect and stand with our brothers and sisters in Christ no matter what stage of maturity they are in, and wait for the day. The word of God waters us. Prayer is our sunshine. We are in this together.
“Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.” Romans 14:1
What I take away from this parable is that God wants for us to have mercy, and compassion, and love, and steadfastness for one another (Christians). That doesn’t mean that we are to tolerate sin in the house of God (1 Corinthians 5), but our Lord who planted this field shall surely be upset with us uprooting and trampling each other down to run after a job that isn’t ours.
Our heavenly father is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentence (1 Peter 3:9). Only God knows the hidden things of the heart (Psalm 44:21; Daniel 2:22; 1 Corinthians 4:5), to know who are His and who are not. He wishes for us to be salt and light in a dark world and preach the gospel to all. What is the gospel? That the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. He made it. When we sinned, He redeemed us with His blood. He now resides in a kingdom which is coming. He has invited us to live there with Him for eternity. The only way to get there is through Jesus – accepting the gift He offers in the scriptures, and turning from every sin that so easily entangles us, letting the blood of Jesus wash those sins away.
Our Lord promises not to send His angels to do the sorting until the harvest is ripe, so that not one tiny grain of wheat is lost.
But make no doubt about it…waiting to the last minute to make up your mind is a dangerous proposition. For when the Lord sends his reaping angels it will be suddenly and swiftly. If you haven’t chosen the Lord by then you might not get any more chances. Please don’t wait my friend.
The Parable Fulfilled
Revelation 14:14-20
PRAYER: Dear and precious Lord, forgive me for the darkness in my heart that makes me judge others unfairly. Help me to tend to my own knitting – which is to help and encourage others in the faith, and be salt and light in this world. Help me to stand tall and strong, and flexible, as a reed unbroken by the wind. Lord help me to be obedient to Your teachings, and forgive me for my shortcomings. And Lord, I pray for my family and my friends who don’t know You as Savior yet, that you will also quicken their hearts to repentance, soon, before they grow cold and hard, before the reapers are sent for the harvest and it is too late. IJN, Amen
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“And this is my prayer, that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.”
— Philippians 1:9,10
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And for all of you who are drawn to the rabbit holes…
…here are the ones touched upon in this parable. (Have fun!)
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The Kingdom of Heaven is like…
Matthew 13:24 — a man who sowed good seed
Matthew 13:31 — mustard seed, which a man took and sowed
Matthew 13:33 — leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal
Matthew 13:44 — treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid again
Matthew 13:45 — a merchant seeking beautful pearls
Matthew 13:47 — a dragnet that’s been cast into the sea
Matthew 13:52 — a householder who brings out of his treasure things old and new
Matthew 18: 23 — a certain king, who forgave a great debt
Matthew 19:14 — like little children
Matthew 20:1 — a landowner, who went out early to hire laborers
Matthew 22:2 — a certain king, who arranged a marriage for his son
Matthew 25:1 — shall be likened unto ten virgins, five wise and five foolish
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For whatever reason, I feel compelled to draw a line between the weeping that endures for a night (the tears of the saints), and the wailing and gnashing of teeth (the defiant growling of the wicked).
“In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out.
All your enemies Have opened their mouths wide against you; They hiss and gnash their teeth. They say, “We have swallowed her up! Surely this is the day for which we waited; We have reached it, we have seen it.”
“Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
and whenever it seizes him, it slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and stiffens out. I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.”
Revelation 16:10
“The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and did not repent of their deeds.
I believe this gnashing of teeth referred to in these passages is a facial expression made by angry, frustrated, defiant-to-the-bitter-end people, who refuse to conform or acknowlege God. In their last rebellious gesture they stiffen their necks, squint their eyes, jut their heads forward, grind their teeth together, and growl through their pain and tears in fist-pounding defiance.
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In contrast to wailing of the wicked is the weeping of the SAINTS OF GOD… which only last for a moment:
“His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:5 (NKJV)
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“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Revelation 21:4 (KJV)
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“For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous.” – Romans 2:13
“All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: ‘I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.’” Matthew 13:34; Mark 4:33-34; and Psalm 78:2 (A Contemplation of Asaph)
The first thing that begs a question in my mind is WHY? Why did Jesus speak to the people in parables?
Let’s start our journey with the definition of the word parable:
par·a·ble
ˈperəb(ə)l/
noun
a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels. synonyms:allegory, moral story/tale, fable, exemplum
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“And the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ He answered and said to them, ‘Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given…because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.'” Matthew 13:10,11,13
In a recent teaching by Stephen Armstrong of Oak Hill Church in Austin, Texas, Verse-by-Verse Ministries, Pastor Armstrong points out that there was a defining point between when Jesus taught all of the people openly and when He began teaching only in parables. It was when the Pharisee’s accused Jesus of doing what He did by the power of Satan. Jesus informed the church leaders who were making that awful accusation, that their actions were considered blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, which is the unforgivable sin. That’s when no more signs would be given to them except for the “sign of Jonah.”
Now that might be lost on us, but Pastor Armstrong goes on to explain that the “sign of Jonah” was a total eclipse of the sun (please listen to his End Times Seminar at Max Lucado’s Oak Hills Church, in San Antonio, TX. It is soooo good!). When Jonah preached to the Ninevites, all the way back in the Old Testament there was a total eclipse of the sun. The event was so significant to the people of Jonah’s day that it was registered in the Jewish church annals and the Pharisees and Scribes of Jesus’ day would have been completely familiar with what Jesus was talking about.
Now perhaps they dismissed Jesus’ prophesy, or maybe His words didn’t fully register to them at the time, but for that sect of “sign seekers” to see the sun darkened at the moment Jesus died on the cross, it would have been the shuddering confirmation in their hearts that Jesus’ words were true and that they had just killed their Messiah.
I pray that our hearts are soft today to hear the word of God, so that we will not get to the end of our lives, filled with dread, when we realize God’s words are true!!!!
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Our Bible text is from Matthew, Mark, and Luke. I have included all three versions of the story so we can compare them and try to piece together a whole story. I happen to use the New King James Version of the Bible, but if you have a version you prefer you are most certainly welcome to read out of your own. This is one of the longer parables, especially when there is also the explanation, so today’s reading will be a little longer than most of the others. Are you ready? Here we go…
The Parable of the Sower
Matthew 13:1-9
“On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2 And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow.4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Mark 4:1-9
“And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow.4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the aircame and devoured it.5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
9 And He said to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Luke 8:4-8
“And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable: 5 “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.6 Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.8 But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
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The Parable of the Sower Explained
Jesus did everything that He did with a purpose. Everything He did was a training exercise, not only for His beloved of that day, but His beloved of this day as well. Jesus spoke in parables to see if we are teachable. The parables, like all of the word of God can be hard to understand. Some dismiss the Bible as fables, or as dusty old words with no relevance for modern day. If that’s how we approach the word of God, that is all it will ever be to us. But if we go to Him and ask for wisdom, and take the time to look deep into its mystery, like the disciples did, He will open it to to our understanding. We have prayer as a way to ask Him for wisdom, and He gave us His Holy Spirit to open our minds to comprehension. The Holy Spirit living inside of us will teach us.
Matthew 13:18-23
“Therefore hear the parable of the sower:19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Mark 4:13-20
“And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?14 The sower sows the word.15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness;17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble.18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word,19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
Luke 4:11-15
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.12 Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.13 But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.14 Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.15 But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.”
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For this parable I took out my notebook and wrote the four types of soils, and then under each type I wrote what each of the gospels said about them. Were there some details in one that were missing in another? Good detective skills will help us piece it all together for a better understanding.
WAYSIDE:
(Matthew) – Parable: the birds (who are the birds?) came and devoured the seed (what is the seed?) Parable explained: the seedling (person) hears the “word of the kingdom” but doesn’t understand it; the “wicked one” snatches it away. (So Matthew understood Jesus to say that the seed that falls on this soil is the word of the kingdom, it basically falls on deaf ears, and doesn’t leave an impression).
(Mark) – Parable: ditto Matthew Parable explained: Mark heard Jesus say that if THIS parable is hard to understand, how will anyone understand the others (which is a challenge to me to always try to understand it)? Mark says the seed that falls on this soil is the word and Satan takes it away.
(Luke) – Parable: adds that the seed is trampled down(which I take to mean that it is considered to have little to no value), and the birds devour it Parable explained: Luke understood that the seed that falls on this soil is the word of God and that the devil steals it from our hearts, to keep us from believing and being saved.
Who might the birds be in your life who eat that seed every time it is planted? Who might those be in your life who trample God’s seed, and consider it of no value? Is it a teacher, a professor, an atheist friend, a book you read or the shows you watch on TV? Maybe none of your friends are people of faith and they would make fun of you for becoming a Christian? Maybe no one in your family is religious at all? Honestly, this was the condition of my heart for most of my teenage years. I believed in God, but His word was more like a good luck charm. I am grateful that the Lord was persistent to keep tilling the soil of my heart and sowing His seeds.
STONY PLACES:
(Matthew) – Parable: not much earth, seeds sprout quickly, no deep roots, become sun-scorched Parable explained: this person is quickly swayed by emotion into believing, but only for a short time. Tribulation and persecution causes this person to stumble.
(Mark) – Parable: basically ditto MatthewParable explained: basically ditto Matthew
(Luke) – Parable: Luke says “rock” instead of “stony places,” and that the seed lacks enough moisture to survive. Parable explained: basically the same as Matthew and Mark, but instead of using the word stumble, Luke says fall-away.
Have you heard the gospel and happily let it take root for a while, but then the fires and trials of life caused you to let it fizzle and die? Maybe something happened that caused you to question whether God is real? Like, why won’t He give you a baby? Or, why did He take your daddy away? Or, why did He let you be born with a defect? Or, why are evil people allowed to live and do horrible things?
I confess that when I finally believed as a young mother it was a very emotional experience. I was filled with joy and gladness, but those emotions soon came crashing back to earth when I started thinking about the persecution that would be coming for me. It caused me to go through a hard tribulation of self-conciousness and shame. I knew my salvation was real; everything changed inside, but I was also battered by Satan over all the sins of my past and what a worthless person I had been. Those sins truly haunted me, and I was embarrassed to show my face outside my house for fear of the finger-pointing by people who knew me at my worst. I wanted to, I guess, reject everybody before they rejected me, and kept a hard shell of Spiritual privacy on my heart for a long time, but the Lord has been faithful to complete His work in me and to turn my fearful heart of stone into a heart of flesh. Tribulation builds character (Romans 5:3-5), and is a refining fire. His perfect love has cast out a motherlode of fears. And praise the Good Lord, my family loved me and stuck by me, and most of them who weren’t saved even came to know Jesus as well. I can thank the Lord for keeping me from being like a dog who returns to her own vomit. The seed may have been sown on rocky soil, but the Lord transplanted me, and kept me alive with abundant water until I could put down deeper roots. Praise God Almighty He set me free!!!!
AMONG THORNS:
(Matthew) – Parable: seedlings choked from thornsParable explained: the seedlings live – they hear the word, but are more concerned with making money, which is the thorn in their life that causes him/her to be unfruitful.
(Mark) – Parable: choked and fruitlessParable explained: the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things are what choke the word that is sown in this person’s heart, and make them unfruitful.
(Luke) – Parable: thorns sprang up and choked it Parable explained: these seedlings hear and even go out (to be fruitful), but are choked by cares, riches, and pleasures of life so that the fruit on their branches never matures.
Has the word of God taken root in you, but the cares of life have you choked back from growing and maturing? You love God, and go to church, but not all the time. You don’t have time to read your Bible, or pray really, because you work full time and have family responsibilities. Maybe none of your friends or family are people of faith and they keep you busy with other things?
This one might be, oh who am I kidding, IS my biggest struggle! I’m glad I don’t live in the city where there are endless things to chase after and want. I get myself in enough trouble as it is. I am often distracted by the cares of this world (what I will eat, what I will wear, getting my house clean and my laundry done), and by the lust for riches (purchasing lottery tickets instead of giving to ministry), and the Lord knows I am a seeker of pleasure rather than a seeker of Him way too much of the time. My life has a weed problem, and it is my least favorite chore, but if I don’t get on top of it when I see it getting out of hand, it will eventually choke out all the life in me, and I will never mature past infancy in Christ. Even worse, when I finally get to heaven I will have little to no fruit to bring to God’s table. 😦
GOOD GROUND:
(Matthew) – Parable: yielded a crop 100-fold, 60, and 30Parable explained: hears the word, understands it, bears fruit 100-fold, 60, and 30.
(Mark) – Parable: the amount of fruitfulness is reversed, 30, 60, 100 Parable explained: hear the word, accept it, bear fruit in the same reversed order.
(Luke) – Parable: only uses the 100-fold yieldParable explained: Luke almost always has more details. He understood Jesus to say that this seedling hears with a noble and good heart, doesn’t forget what he hears, and bears fruit with patience.
I am soooooo blessed that someone had the courage to sow God’s seed in my heart and grateful it took root. My whole life honestly changed the day I received Christ! I love the word of God and study it often. I pray continually. Almost all of my friends are Christian. But when I look around I’m not sure that I have any evidence of fruit. I’ve never personally led anyone to the Lord and am worried and discouraged by all my dead branches. Perhaps I just need the Lord to prune me? Gosh, will there be anything left when He is done?
“But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:5-8 NKJV
It might be a slower process than we would like – attaining to the perfect love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control that the Lord is growing in us, but if the Holy Spirit is alive in us and allowed to have dominion in our hearts, He will constantly cultivate us towards the fullness of all those beautiful traits..
The FRUIT of the Spirit is:
Love
Joy
Peace
Patience
Kindness
Goodness
Gentleness
Faithfulness
and Self Control
~ Galatians 5:22-23 ~
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He who began a good work in us will see it on to completion. A tiny mustard seed of faith WILL GROW into a giant tree that the birds of the air can nest upon.
I pray this study will bless you and strengthen you in your inner person.
Let us not look around at others and compare. Let us just keep feeding our Spirit and putting down good deep roots! When we are filled with the Holy Spirit and full of His life in us, those fruits will mature and drop off onto the soils of the earth all around us, and sprout and grow in the hearts of others. We may never know the impact we’ve had on people’s lives around us, and that’s okay. I’d rather be surprised by the abundance of fruit when I get to heaven than puffed up with pride thinking I deserve something that I really had nothing to do with.
But while we are on this earth, and when we feel His Spirit prompting us to love others, to give to others, to be kind to others, to have patience for others, to bless and not to curse… let us let His Spirit have His wonderous way. Those are His seeds we sow, and His fruitful harvest to come.
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“So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” – 1 Corinthians 3:7
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Prayer: Precious Lord Jesus, thank you for Your word and for the Holy Spirit whom you gave to me, who helps me to understand what I read in Your word, and gives me the power to live it. Thank You for cultivating the soil of my heart, watering me, giving me food, loving me, protecting me, and always being with me on this road of life. Praise you Lord, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Give me the heart for others that You have for them. Help me to be full of Your Spirit, and fruitful, that one day I may come to Your housewarming with a basket full of fruit to share with You. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.
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“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” – James 1:22-25
Planning a luncheon? Here are twelve personally tested plans, complete with posters, menus, decorating and music suggestions, and recipes for a complete meal, along with desserts and beverages, paired with matching activities, for small, medium, or large groups.
The posters featured for each party can be printed and posted in a break-room or mailroom of your workplace, or if your gathering is non-work related, they can be printed and used as paper invitations and individually mailed out. Or they can be posted in a closed-group on Facebook, texted to your guests, or emailed.
SEPTEMBER
Theme 1: Back to School Picnic
If the weather still permits in your neck of the woods, consider making this an outdoor event. Either dress up some picnic tables outside, or lay down large blankets on an area of lawn, under a big shade tree. If the weather does not permit, dress up the indoors to look like a picnic. Place a few fans for cool breezes, and set up a CD player with a sounds of nature CD – I personally love anything featuring the Rocky Mountains.
Sounds of Yellowstone (and check out all the “National Park Series” Nature Sounds CDs)
Decorations: Red checkered tablecloths, with centerpieces of baskets of apples, hand bells, cups full of sharpened pencils, and slates with sticks of chalk laid across each.
Table Games and Diversions: Pose trivia questions from the game, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader, available as an APP (google play or apple store) for your phone.
Luncheon:
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OCTOBER
Theme 1:Peanuts, It’s the Great Pumpkin
Decorations: Cover the tables with earthtone tableclothes (plain brown, plain orange, plain hunter green, plain yellow, etc.). Create centerpieces with Hobby Lobby scarecrows, small pumpkins, Indian corn, corn stalk bundles, small decorative garden rakes, and colorful fall leaves (paper).
Table Games and Diversions: Get a fall scene puzzle started for people to work on as they eat, and drink, and chit-chat. OR, print several puzzles (secret codes, sudukus, riddles, Hangman, mazes, etc.) and place on the tables for guests to solve.
Luncheon:
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NOVEMBER
Theme 1: Pilgrims and Thanksgiving harvest theme
Decorations: Pilgrims, Indians, and Mayflower ships, Cornucopias filled with corn, gourds, pumpkins, etc. and turkeys.
Table Games and Diversions: Cover the tables in light colored paper and leave colored Crayola markers around for people to randomly jot down things they are thankful for. Or, look for disposable Thanksgiving tablecloths at the party stores with puzzles and coloring images all over them.
Luncheon:
Theme 2: Elections
Decorations: Patriotic with Democrat and Republican symbols
Table Games and Diversions: Election trivia and candidate profiles, absentee & voter regristration cards.
Luncheon: Lasagnas (meat, chicken, veggie), garlic toast, green salads, Italian Sodas, red and white grape juices served in wine glasses, Italian Cream Cake
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DECEMBER
Theme 1:Christmas Tea
Decorations: Find or make little stockings for each guest and fill with a candy cane or other small gift and use to decorate the tree. Bring in a CD player and a variety of Christmas music that will appeal to everyone’s taste and play it continuously. Stew some good smelling potpourri in a crock-pot.
Table Games and Diversions: Scatter Christmas Trivia cards around on the tables.
Table Games and Diversions: Fold little paper “footballs” for each table and show your guests how to play table football, using their fingers for goal posts. See how to play at wiki-how or better still…watch this You Tube video.
Luncheon: Three varieties of Chili (red, green, and white chicken), plus a buffet of toppings (green onions, cheese, sour cream, chopped jalapenos, etc.). Serve non-alcoholic beers, sodas, and Mug Cakes for dessert. (click here for chili recipes) or (click here for mug cake recipe)
Flier shown below was from a luncheon where the Super Bowl was being played in San Francisco so I went with the foods from that area. It was Peyton Manning’s last game, and Michael Ohr (whose story is told in the movie Blind Side) played for the Carolina Panthers in this match-up.
*Ask everyone to wear his or her sports team shirts or colors.
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FEBRUARY
Theme 1: Academy Awards & Hollywood Walk of Fame
This is a great theme to do to honor your guests. Make them the stars of the party!
Decorations: Cover the table in Black, Silver, and Gold table cloths. Put centerpieces of film reels, film strip, movie trivia cards, clapboards and balloon bouquets. Hang gold stars and spot light and camera decorations from the ceiling. Roll out a red carpet from the entrance of the room to the center. Make a Hollywood Walk-of-Fame star tile for each guest with their name on it.
Games and Diversions: Lay out several packets of sticky notes and pens. Ask guests to write compliments for the other guests on the sticky notes and place them on each person’s star. Let each guest take their Walk-of-Fame stars home.
Luncheon: Decorate the buffet with a sign that says, “Studio Commissary.” Recipes for this luncheon can be found here.
Theme 2: Valentine’s Day
Decorations: Cover the tables in pink paper with sheer lace over the top. Toss around rich red paper hearts, heart shaped boxes of chocolate, rose peddles, and cupid and heart shaped balloons. Set up the boom box with CD’s of romantic love songs.
Games and Diversions: Set out the makings for valentines, red construction paper, white lace, little stickers and stick-on jewels, Cupids, small dowel rods and arrow heads and fletching that can be attached to the ends after it is woven through the heart, black sharpie markers. Ask everyone to participate in a Valentine exchange, just like the kids do at school. Everybody makes a special box for their place at the table, and everyone deposits special “Valentine” notes into each person’s box (compliments, jokes, poems, thank-you notes, etc.). Also, put everyone’s name in a hat and have each person draw out one name to be a secret pal to for the next six months.
Luncheon: Gazpacho soup or Borscht (hot or cold), heart-shaped shrimp sandwiches, Strawberry smoothies or white sparkling cider, Red Velvet Cake for dessert.
BORSCHT
8 cups beef broth
1 pound cooked tender beef stew meat or sliced Kielbasa
1 large onion, peeled, quartered
4 large beets, peeled, chopped
1 leek chopped
3 stalks celery sliced
4 carrots, peeled, chopped
1 large russet potato, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1 14 oz. can stewed tomatoes
3/4 cup chopped fresh dill (or parsley)
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar (or lemon juice)
1 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Bring 4 cups of the beef broth, the beef stew meat, and onion to boil in large pot. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 30 minutes.
2 Add remaining 4 cups broth, beets, leek, celery, carrots, and potato; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
3 Stir in meat, cabbage and 1/2 cup dill; cook until cabbage is tender, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in vinegar.
Ladle soup into bowls. Top with sour cream and remaining 1/4 cup dill.
Serves 6
GAZPACHO
3 cups tomatoes, red ripe, seeded and diced
2 cups red bell pepper, diced medium
2 cups red onions, diced medium
1/2 cup celery, diced medium
2 cups cucumber, diced medium
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cups organic vegetable juice
pinch cayenne
1 teaspoon cumin
1 Mix diced tomato, peppers, red onions, celery and cucumber together in a medium bowl.
2 Divide the mixture in half and separate in two bowls. 3 Add garlic to one of the bowls and empty into blender. Add vinegar to the blender and puree until smooth. 4 Add the vegetable juice, cayenne and cumin to the blender. Blend. 5 Add the puree to the bowl of diced vegetables. 6 Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with lemon and cilantro.
Serves 8
SHRIMP LUNCHEON SANDWICHES
1 small package (3 ounces) cream cheese
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
dash garlic powder
1 cup chopped cooked cleaned shrimp
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1 teaspoon grated onion
20 to 40 slices white sandwich bread, lightly buttered
Blend cream cheese with mayonnaise; blend in the ketchup, mustard, and garlic powder. Stir in shrimp, celery, and grated onion. Use as a filling spread only in the center of two slices of sandwich bread. Or if you can squeeze two cookie cutter cuttings out of a slice of bread, spread the filling in each of the opposing corners of the bread. Use a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut the sandwiches out. Toss the scraps. Makes about 1 cup of shrimp sandwich filling, for about 20 sandwiches.
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MARCH
Theme 1: Saint Patrick’s Day (Lucky Leprechaun Theme)
Decorations: Cover the tables in light green table cloths or paper. Cut out dozens of various sized dark green shamrocks from construction paper. On each shamrock write an Irish blessing. Scatter these blessings around on the tables. Set out small black kettles filled with gold foil covered chocolate coins. Set up a CD player with Irish pub music, or Celtic music, or Riverdance music playing.
Table Games and Diversions: Ask your guests to choose one Irish Blessing from the table. Have each guest stand and recite their blessing to the other luncheon guests in their best Irish accents.
Decorations: nests with colored eggs in them, and pans of real green grass with eggs nestled in them.
Table Games and Diversions: Print out several famous lines from various Bible movies and let guest guess the movie and actor who said it.
Host an Easter Egg Hunt. Pick the day, maybe the Thursday before Good Friday. The night before, go and hide plastic eggs all over the building. Hide some in each person’s desk and more in the break room. Tuck little jellybeans, Hershey kisses, and/or cute notes (fortunes or blessings) inside the eggs. Place a small paper basket on each person’s desk with a note inviting him or her to the Easter egg hunt at a specific time. The instructions should tell them that eggs have been hidden in their personal space and in the break room and that all they find are theirs. Also inform them that the person who finds the most eggs will win a special prize so that they need to put their number found next to their name on the poster in the break room. This is a lot less work if you can find an accomplice to share the labor and expense with you. The prize can be anything you want: car wash tokens, movie passes, pizza gift certificate, post-it notes and colored pens, a pedicure/manicure, etc.
Luncheon:
APRIL
Theme 1: April Showers Garden Party
Decorations: Cover the tables with light blue paper and set rubber duckies and rubber boots as centerpieces, filled with Tulips, Daffodils, and Hyacinth. Play a CD of The Sound of Summer Rain, and Thundering Rainstorm.
Table Games and Diversions: Purchase a small clay pot for each employee and let each guest fill a pot with small fish aquarium pebbles. Let them then attach an imitation flower to a pen with floral tape, and then poke the pens down into the pebbles. Each guest now has their own little pen pot.
Luncheon:
Theme 2: April Fools
Decorations: Cover the tables with Newspaper. Toss several gag type props around on the tables (silly eye goggles, mustaches, big wax lips, silly hats, etc.)
Table Games and Diversions: Monkey See, Monkey Do! Discretely tape a monkey to the bottom of one person’s chair. The person who finds the monkey under their chair during the luncheon must do something nice for someone AND and then cleverly hide the monkey in someone else’s desk or chair somewhere else in the building. Keep the game going all month. The person who receives the monkey pays the nice deed forward and discretely passes the monkey on.
Luncheon: (See recipes here) and (here) (pictured below in clockwise order: Bundt Pan Stuffed Pepperoni Pizza with Mozzerella “Icing,” Shepherd’s Pie Meatloaf cupcakes with beet juice colored mashed potatoes for frosting, Yellow cake with “speghetti” piped frosting/Ferrero Rocher Hazelnut chocolate meatballs/Red Berry Jam drizzled as “speghetti” sauce, Chex Puppy Chow in a pet bowl, Fish crackers in a fish bowl.
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MAY
Theme 1: Cinco de Mayo – Fiesta
Decorations: Cover the tables with Mexican blankets, Use sombreros, piñatas, maracas, ponchos, and pottery for centerpieces. Also have a nice mariachi band playing on the CD player for ambience.
Table Games and Diversions: Learn Spanish words by scattering Lotería cards around on the tables. Play Lotería after or during luncheon.
Luncheon:
Theme 2: Mother’s Day
Decorations: cover the tables in pretty floral tablecloths with lace tablecloths layered over. Use teapots and teacups and little wrapped tea bags for centerpieces.
Table Games and Diversions: Honor the MOMS. Ask each of the staff to bring a picture of their mom that we can post on the Guess Who? Board. Each photo will have a number on the front of it so staff members can guess what mother goes with which staff member.
Luncheon: Make your own sandwich bar with assorted breads, cold cuts, cheeses, condiments, lettuce, sprouts, sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, etc., a large veggie tray, potato chips, assorted beverages, and Indoor Smores for dessert.
Make Smores INDOORS… Place sterno cans into metal candle holders, set on coasters, remove lids and light with a BBQ lighter. Place graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars in serving dishes set between the sterno cans. Let your guests skewer a marshmallow with a kabob skewer and then roast over sterno flame until toasted. Use a canning jar magnet to replace lids on sterno cans to extinguish the fire. Let sterno cans sit until completely cooled before packing up.
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JUNE
Theme 1: Beach Party
Decorations: Cover the tables with large colorful beach towels. Use beach balls, flip flops, Frisbees, sand box toys as centerpieces. Play a CD of Beach Boys music on continuous play, or a Sounds of Nature Ocean Waves CD.
Table Games and Diversions: Guessing Jars. Set a large jar filled with items (jelly beans, peanut M&Ms, paperclips, teabags, etc.) on each table and let guests turn in one guess each for the jar on their table. The one closest to the right number wins the jar.
Luncheon:
Theme 2: Father’s Day
Decorations: Cover the tables in brown paper. Use tackle boxes, fishing lures, and nets for centerpieces. Hang a sign on the door that says, “Gone Fishing.”
Have several tall-tale fishing stories printed out on paper that you can lay around. Have the guys bring pictures of their big catches that you can post on a board.
Table Games and Diversions: Set out a half dozen of those electronic fishing games, that look like the handle of a fishing pole with a rod and reel, that you cast and then watch the video screen to see if you caught anything. Ask around… you probably have a few people on staff that have one and will donate it to the lounge for a month.
Luncheon: Fish and Chips. Bake up several batches of battered fish and fat French fries. Offer lemon wedges, tartar sauce, and malt vinegar as condiments. Brew up some fresh sun tea and lemonade. And indoor smores for dessert.
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JULY
Theme 1: Red/White/Blue
Decorations: Anything flag-like or military, or founding fathers. Play a patriotic music CD.
Table Games and Diversions: Have a frog-jumping contest using plastic frogs. Have a picnic with various yard games set up (sack races, three-legged races, hula hoop contest, croquet, Frisbee, volleyball).
Luncheon: Do a Salad Bar, canned soda pop (in coolers), and serve popsicles for dessert.
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AUGUST
Theme 1: Dog days of Summer
Decorations: anything dog related, stuffed animal dogs, collars, dog food bowls, leashes, obedience school ads, rolled up newspapers, fire hydrants, etc.
Table Games and Diversions: Dog trivia : funny dog names, famous dogs and dogs of movies stars, dog tricks. How many words can you make from the word Dashhund, or German Shepherd, or Wiemeriner, or Catahoula, etc.
Luncheon: Hot Dog Bar (with all the trimmings/toppings)
So I know you’re asking – how did a reluctant hostess get herself into this one? It’s pretty simple, really. I’m a mom! One who enjoyed soooo much being part of my daughters’ lives. It was my super social and outgoing oldest one who actually had faith in me, included me in the activities of her high school life, and allowed me to live vicariously through her that helped to bring me out of my shell. She wasn’t embarrassed of me and because of her trust it was such an honor to support her activities. So when she said the drama teacher was having a meeting for any parents that wanted to help with the upcoming play and backstage stuff, I jumped on the bandwagon with Tigger (that’s T … I … double guh … er) SpRiNgS. If she thought I could do it, well, I’d suck up my insecurities and give it a whirl, because I sure didn’t want to let her down.
It was the worst winter night outside, blustery cold with arctic winds, roads covered in ice, and the sky aglow with snow-filled clouds. I think all us parents had places we’d rather been that night, then the parent meeting. Instead, we left behind crock pot dinners, sinks full of dirty dinner dishes, our favorite TV programs, and our cozy, toasty homes, and drove, cautiously, on ice-covered roads to the school for that can’t-miss meeting.
The very punctual drama teacher started right on the dot at 7PM. He passed out papers and then took his place front and center. Clearing his throat and grasping the mic, he began. <screech…tap, tap, tap> “Hello! I’m Mr. Stedillie. Thank you for coming out tonight. I’ll get right to it. I need… (he went down the list, but I’ll skip to) …someone who would like to be in charge of the cast party following the final performance? Anyone? Anyone? And dast it happened that I raised my hand. Oh thank you Mrs. Hoffman, I’ll write you down.”
Like a natural idiot my hand went up and up and up. I volunteered for everything that came down the pike — backstage parent –check; costumes –check; props –check; cast party –check. I don’t know, as I said before, I guess I just wanted to impress my daughter, but there must have also been something in the quaint mustiness of that room. Perhaps the props, or the scripts piled willy-nilly on the book shelf, or possibly something in the eclectic assortment of costumes hanging on racks emitted an intoxicating stimulant? Perchance it was the nostalgic posters hanging on the walls, or the personalized wall bricks autographed by student actors from all the plays gone by that wooed me?
Maybe it was the theatrical passion with which Mr. Stedillie’s delivered his speech that moved me? Awe shucks, I’m really not sure; all I know is I got all caught up in the song and dance of the situation. One thing is for sure, that guy is persuasive. He really knows how to get parents involved. He probably has some swamp land in Arizona I’d be interested in too.
I went home, got a good night’s sleep, woke the next morning, and was nibbling my corn flakes when it hit me…a full-fledged PANIC ATTACK!!! What the <colorful expliative> have I done? I swallowed hard, took a few deep breaths and began hyperventilating. I think my legs gave out first. My head started spinning. My fingers tingled. “OMGosh,” I muttered, in a fading and puny voice, as everything went black and my body smashed to the floor with a THUD!
An imaginary Police-Line-Do-Not-Cross ribbon fluttered in the breeze as my fainting corpse whizzed past it. The dust from the chalk outline around my lifeless carcass flew up and settled back down by the concussion.
Okay, arrest the silliness. Suffice it to say, I was outside of my comfort zone on this one for sure, but that’s par for the course for me. I’m pretty much always outside my comfort zone. It was time to pull on my big girl panties and git’r done. Stop with this mamby-pamby cry baby stuff and get busy.
Cast Party #1
Bye Bye Birdie
Food:
Hollywood Cake (a sheet cake with the Hollywood Hills letters on it)
Sparkling Cider (or 7-Up or Ginger Ale) in champagne flutes
Forks, napkins, and plates (star plates would be extra neat)
Decorations:
Walk of Fame stars for each of the cast members, placed in a large square around the perimeter of the room, & later used as the spaces for the trivia game
Red carpet (for entrance) (use red paper that is used for bulletin boards)
Silver, Gold, and Black Balloon Bouquets
White balloons (with slips of paper with” forfeits” written on them hidden inside)
Black construction paper Oscar, Tony, and Emmy cut-outs
Movie posters (check with video rental stores and the movie theaters for freebies)
Disposable flash cameras (for a Paparazzi feel as the cast arrives)
CD of Hollywood Blockbuster theme music (for atmosphere)
Celebrity Magazines (Us, People, etc.) to put on each table
Games:
Elvis game is done Gong Show style: Contestants with the best “routines” get to pick from the prize box, and those with the worst win a balloon with a forfeit inside that the loser must perform)
Slips of paper inside a balloon will tell them what they win (prize), or what they have to do next as a loser (forfeit). Winning & loosing cast members must help each other break a balloon by pressing the balloon between their bodies until it breaks – no hands allowed).
Prizes:
Plastic metallic star sunglasses
Autograph book
Tickets to a movie
Coupons for local fast food selections
Forfeits:
Finish your drink in five seconds
Kiss someone on the cheek
Do an impersonation
Make an Academy Award’s speech
Tell 5 best features about yourself, or a friend
Tell 5 worst features about yourself, or a friend
Run the next game
Dance a ballet
Act out a charade until someone guesses it
Hum a tune until someone guesses it
Help clean-up after the party
Elvis Impersonation Contest
The impersonator has to put on the outfit and step up to the karaoke microphone. They can pick whatever “Elvis routine” they want. They need to do their best to sound like him, move like him, and say something Elvis would say (Thank you, thankyouverymuch), move like Elvis would move, or sing an Elvis song. Audience votes on the best and worst routines with clapping and shouting or boo’s. A majority of boo’s gets a GONG!
Can-I-Have-Your-Autograph Game
Each kid is fitted with a large, rectangular piece of stiff cardboard, attached to his or her writing hand with duct tape, like a shield. They each get a sharpie marker to be used with their other (non-writing hand). When the leader says, “go,” they scurry around collecting autographs from as many people as they can, also giving their autographs, before time is up. Everyone has to try to write his or her name legibly. These cards are souvenirs of the party. Whoever collected the most legible signatures wins.
Name That Musical and Trivia Game
This game is done exactly like Trivial Pursuit, except in giant size. The Cafeteria floor becomes the game board, the Walk of Fame Stars will be the spaces on the game board, and the kids themselves are the pawns that move on the game board.
Make a large die out of a square box. (Fill the box completely full with wadded newspaper to give it strength. Tape it securely shut all the way around. Paint it white, and when that has dried, paint on the black spots.) Put a pylon every 10 stars or so all around the Walk of Fame, nine pylons all together. Mark each pylon with the name of a musical; there’ll be three of each. Group the pylons with the same musical together, in other words, three pylons in a row will be for one musical, then the next three going around the circle will be another musical, and the next three will be the last musical. This way the kids have to navigate the entire circle to try to earn tokens.
Have everyone take their place on the stars, with socky feet only, so the stars don’t get damaged. The leader of the game rolls the big dice and all the cast members move that many spaces (stars) going clockwise. Whoever is standing next to a pylon is asked a trivia question (a different question for each person with the same musical). If they get the answer right they earn a token. There are three tokens: Blue, Red, and White (poker chips), one for each musical category. The leader rolls the dice again. Players move. Anyone standing next to a pylon gets asked a trivia question. Once again, if they get it right they get a token, BUT, they only earn a token if it is a category they haven’t earned a token for already. Continue until someone has one of each token. Winner gets a prize and the game starts all over again from there.
Use a CD with top musical songs and find lists of trivia questions for Bye Bye Birdie, Kiss Me Kate, and Grease – the last three musicals that the school has done.
Karaoke
(rent a machine and music library)
Telephone
Make a list of “gossip stories” ahead of time. Try to dig up a little bit of “dirt” ahead of time on several of the kids in the play if you can, but nothing venomous. If you have a lot of parents helping they will be able to come up with something on their own kid and his friends. Or leave it impromptu by allowing someone to tell a “yarn” about someone in the group. If you are concerned about appropriateness, have the story teller first tell to one of the adults who will make sure it is suitable, and then the adult will pass it on to the next kid. Have the kids sit in a large circle wherever there is space in the room. They in turn whisper the story into the next person’s ear beside them. This continues around the circle for 60 seconds. When TIME is called, whomever the gossip reached has to say out loud the story that they heard. Then the original story is retold to compare accuracy.
We, the parents, left the evening fairly open to spontaneity as the kids were completely content to snack on the foods, sign each other’s programs from the play for souvenirs, and ham it up behind the Karaoke microphone for most of evening — very much self entertaining. But we were armed to the teeth with activities if at any time it got slow and boring. The party lasted until about 3 o’clock in the morning, at which time the parents and school staff began picking up and clearing the cafeteria.
Cast members got to take home their STARS and an Oscar look-a-like (small inexpensive trophies ordered from Oriental Trading Co.).
This was the cast party that broke me in.
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AND THEN CAME…
Cast Party #2
Oklahoma!
I’m telling you….. I had so much fun last year – don’t ya know – that I turned right around and signed up again the next year. This time, my daughter had a lead role so I felt a sort of obligation to step up to a lead role also. If she somehow found the courage, I felt I needed to as well. This time I volunteered to be the head-chick-in charge of the party. Yes, that’s right, the CHAIRPERSON! Aren’t you proud of me?
Well, reserve your applause. If not for some serious transforming work on the part of the Almighty I would not have had the gumption to speak up and volunteer or have the outrageous joy in my heart to motivate me through the long days and nights. It was also the realization that this was the last opportunity I may ever have for such a thing, with my “drama queen” girl graduating and all. Plus, I was a step ahead of the game on this one… I already had some experience under my belt with the last one, and a great awakening that these high school kids aren’t as intimidating as one would first imagine. They’re a hoot, a lot of hoots in fact, and if you don’t show fear they won’t notice any, ’cause they are sort of self-absorbed themselves. 🙂
My plan (Schedule) for Oklahoma Cast Party:
After last curtain: Kids enter Cafeteria on a Paparazzi lined red carpet (Hollywood music playing large on a boom box or sound system), cameras flashing, and a guest book waiting to be signed by each cast member.
Walk of Fame stars leading the way from the Red Carpet to the food tables and around the room.
Food tables (heaped with delivery Pizza and all the backstage leftover’s, along with cake, and champagne flutes filled with sparkling cider)
Mock Academy Awards show – with trophies awarded
Autographs (everybody mingling and signing each other’s programs)
Karaoke
Party games set at various tables
Square Dancing Lesson and Contest (optional)
Trivia Game (just like I created for Bye, Bye, Birdie) (optional)
To do list:
Get a list of the Cast families from the drama teacher (need for party supplies purchases, etc.)
*Call for volunteers for party needs
Order the cake
Get a list of the Cast members from the director (need for the Walk-of-Fame Stars)
Get red paper (for the red carpet) from school office
Get 100 sheets of pink construction paper from school office (for the Walk-of-Fame Stars)
Get 100 sheets of black construction paper from school office (for Stars)
Check at school district office A/V Department to see if they have Oscar cut-outs – black construction paper – need 75, and if they will laminate the stars
Make Stars for the Walk of Fame – need stone spray paint, metallic markers
Get trivia questions for Bye Bye Birdie, Grease, Kiss Me Kate, and Oklahoma! (These are available on the Internet website: Funtrivia.com. Questions are only available online. No printout. So you’ll have to write down the questions as you take the quizzes yourself, and then write down the answers when you click to see how you did.
Follow up with volunteers on their purchases and promises to help
The morning before the final performance, count ballots and stuff Awards envelopes, and get gold, silver & black balloons and movies posters from video stores
The afternoon before the final performance pick up the cake; decorate the cafeteria, set up food tables, set up karaoke, bring a boom box, etc.
The night after the final performance help chaperone the CAST PARTY
*Call for volunteers for the following party needs:
_________ Make/buy the cake (75 servings) “Hollywood” sheet cake
_________ Bring four 2-litre bottles of 7-Up, or 5 bottles sparkling cider
_________ Bring four 2-litre bottles of 7-Up, or 5 bottles sparkling cider
_________ Bring four 2-litre bottles of 7-Up, or 5 bottles sparkling cider
_________ Bring four 2-litre bottles of 7-Up, or 5 bottles sparkling cider
_________ Buy 20 disposable champagne glasses
_________ Buy 20 disposable champagne glasses
_________ Buy 20 disposable champagne glasses
_________ Buy 20 disposable champagne glasses, plus a pkg. of 100 napkins
_________ Buy Latex balloons (1 dz. ea gold/silver/& black)
_________ Help set up and decorate the cafeteria Saturday afternoon
_________ Help tape down stars for the Walk of Fame Saturday morning
_________ Find and be in charge of the Karaoke machine
_________ Help manage the party, take pictures, serve cake, etc.
_________ Help manage the party, take pictures, serve champagne
_________ Buy 6 disposable cameras and come take pictures at party
_________ Help clean-up after the party
_________ Check with Wal-Mart, Party America, Dollar store, Party Animals, and other local businesses to see if they would be willing to donate supplies for our party
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GETTING IT DONE
Okay, so in the days and weeks while the kids rehearsed for the performance I tended to all the little jobs that needed to be done.
I picked up the construction paper and got to work on making ninety-five Walk-of-Fame stars. These were going to look just like the real ones which decorate the sidewalks of Hollywood. Black squares, pink stars, flecks of white and gray and black spattered on each. The stars outlined with metallic gold marker and the squares outlined with metallic silver – the names in block letters centered in the stars. A logo below each name so that people could tell by a glance if that person was an actor, an orchestra member, a stage hand, or a teacher. When they were all put together I laminated them, and cut them apart.
I asked at every grocery store if they would be willing to donate sparkling cider. I asked at the party store if they would donate champagne glasses, plates, and forks.
I asked at the bakery if they would donate a cake.
I went online and found some inexpensive star trophies and the drama teacher cut a check for them out of the ticket sales funds.
I contacted the parents that signed up to help me, and delegated jobs to all who were willing. I put an agenda in the mail to each of them.
I sat in on dozens of rehearsals.
I made big dice cubes for one of the games. I made the ballot box. I picked up a Fact or Crap game. I got the red paper for the red carpet.
Little by little I whittled away at the chores until opening night. That was my night to work backstage. And OMGosh, how much fun was that for me? The luckiest ol’ gal on the block I was, for sure!!!
At the final curtain of opening night I passed out ballots to all the performers for the Awards show that would take place at the cast party.
The next night I collected them. My husband and I came to watch the musical on Friday night where we sat beaming, pure enchantment chiseled across our faces. It was the cast’s best performance of the weekend. Encore, encore!
The day of the party I met with my committee to decorate the cafeteria. I met with the kids in the cast to discuss the Mock Award Show and how that would go. I tallied the votes. I made a separate sheet for each category that showed who the presenters would be and attached the winner envelopes to them. I showed up a few hours early to set up my background music in the cafeteria, be on site for the pizza delivery, and set up the food on the tables. I brought out the chilled cider and starting pouring it into glasses. As parents arrived I put cameras in their hands and sent them to play the part of the paparazzi as the kids entered the cafeteria from the auditorium.
The cast and crew entered the cafeteria to a Hollywood Blockbusters soundtrack playing larger than life on the boom box, down a red carpet lined with black, silver, and gold balloons, and signed their names in the guest book.
They wandered around and looked for their Walk of Fame stars, then headed over to the food tables to see what was offered there. Most of them grabbed a glass of champagne and some cake and found somewhere to sit. Once all the cast was crowded in, my “Academy Awards” actors took the stage and began acting out their routine. Mr. Hill acted out his best Billy Crystal impersonation as the host and mostly insulted the audience with his sarcasm. They all enjoyed it. Two by two the stars came to the podium and announced each category and then asked for the envelope, please. And Trophies were handed out.
The rest of the party played out just like it was supposed to, except I never was able to find a dance instructor so we ditched the square dancing idea. We also ran out of time for the trivia game, well at least for it to be played like I had planned. I did sit on the stage with the microphone and cards and posed questions to the last group of stragglers who were in it to the end. And we giggled until the janitor booted us all out.
Those kids were an absolute blast. I had the best time hanging out with them. Mr. Stedillie, Gino – the janitor, and I were there until about 3:00 A.M. cleaning up. Amazingly I wasn’t even tired. All I could think about was how much fun I’d had, and all the compliments that I’d gotten from the kids and parents. It was a very rewarding experience.
NOTE: If you are contemplating volunteering to help with a High School Musical Cast Party and you are thinking my plan is way too much work. Don’t worry. You don’t have to go to a ton of effort making a theme out of it as I have done. The kids are actually happy to just hang out, eat, sing karaoke, and play some party games. Give it a try!
BTW…some fun choices for party games (at that time) were:
Apples to Apples by Out-of-the-Box Publishing, Inc.
Curses by Play All Day Games, designer Brian Tinsman
Smarty Party by R& R Games, Inc.
Settlers of Catan by Mayfair Games, designer Klaus Teuber
Quelf by Wiggity Bang Games
Pit Deluxe by Winning Moves US
Time’s Up by R & R Games, Inc.
Ultimate Outburst Hersch & Company
Snorta! by Out-of-the-Box Publishing, Inc.
“…the morning STARS sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy!” Job 38:7
Can you hear the birds chirping? And smell the wildflowers in bloom? The pitter-patter of raindrops on the roof? Ahhhh…SPRING!!!! Everything old is new again.
How about having all your gal-pals over for a quick, impromptu lunch, easily prepared on a Sunday afternoon, and served on a manic Monday!!! Do you work outside the home? Text your closest circle of co-workers on Sunday night and tell them not to bring in lunch for themselves, because you’ve got a little surprise for them. Then carry in this little luncheon for your super spoiled little crowd.
QUICHE
I used Pioneer Woman’s Cowboy Quiche recipe, from her cookbook, Food From My Frontier (one of my absolute FAVS), I cheated though and used a store-bought deep-dish pie crust, two in fact. And, I did it myyyyy waaay, with a couple of special touches (to make it a little more girly without being PW’s “Cowgirl Quiche,” because I didn’t have those ingredients on hand). Here’s how I did mine:
Ingredients
2 whole Unbaked Pie Crusts (from the freezer section, thawed and poked)
1 lb. Bacon, fried until crispy
2 Tablespoons Bacon fat (left over from frying the bacon)
1 whole red Onion, Sliced
8 spears of fresh, raw asparagus (I have it growing in my garden, lucky me)
1 cup of diced smoked sausage (I like the spicy jalapeno variety)
8 whole Large Eggs
1-1/2 cup Heavy Cream Or Half-and-Half
Salt And Pepper, to taste
2 cups Grated Colby-Jack Cheese
Let’s Make it…
Fry the bacon until crisp. Chop into little bite-sized pieces and set aside to cool.
Fry the onions in the bacon fat in a large skillet over medium-low heat for about 10 to 15 minutes (until translucent), stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Fix the edges of your pie crusts, if you want them to look a little less store-bought, and then poke them with a fork around the bottom in a few places. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon, chopped smoked sausage, onion, and raw asparagus around in your pie crusts, of course dividing evenly between the two pies. Cover both with cheese.
Whip the eggs, cream, salt and pepper in a large bowl, and then pour the mixture into the pie crusts. Use a fork to pull the contents around a little and make sure the egg mixture seeps down into it all really good.
Place the pies on a rimmed baking sheet, cover lightly with aluminum foil, and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the quiche doesn’t jiggle easily when moved and the crust is golden brown. (The quiche will still seem slightly loose, but will continue to set once remove from the oven.)
Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Cut into slices with a sharp knife, and serve!
You might like to top yours with a little dallop of sour cream, maybe a spoonful of pico de gallo, or torn cilantro leaves. Maybe a drizzle of Shiracha? Or just naked!
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FLATBREAD PIZZAS
< < < I got the idea for these when I saw this photo on Pinterest, and then made it a reality when I found these flatbreads at my local HEB > > >
I purchased several packages of the flatbreads (and have them in the freezer, because the lady at the deli counter said our store is discontinuing them. Bummer!!!! Why do they do that just when I find something that I like??? Husband even liked. Ugh!!!)
Anyway, I took the thawed flatbread and drizzled it with olive oil on both sides, then grilled it for a few minutes on each side on a hot, preheated grill, which gave the bread the nice grill marks and made it really soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. I cut each flatbread into thirds and placed on a platter for my guests.
I purchased a tub of Veggie Cream Cheese and a tub of Chive Cream cheese to spread on the warm bread.
And then I had several veggies chopped up for toppings:
Sliced Radishes
Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
Sliced Red Bell Pepper
Sliced Cucumber
Sliced Red Onion
Baby Arugula, Kale, and Spinach mix
Marinated Artichoke Hearts
Olive Salad
Black Olives
And an eater’s choice of seasonings:
Fresh ground Salt & Pepper
Pizza Seasoning
Pesto
Olive Oil
Basalmic Vinegar
I got’ta tell you, these are just darn good pizzas. Even hubbie liked them, like a LOT!!!! Even said I knocked dinner out’ta the park, and that I was back on my game. Which made me blush a little. And now I really want to impress him more!!! Fresh, crunchy, delish!!!!
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FRUITY LEMONADE
2 or 3 cans of frozen concentrate Lemonade (I like the kind with pulp, pink or regular)
Assorted Fruits:
Lemons
Oranges
Cherries
Watermelon
Strawberries
Blackberries
Limes
Pineapple
Melon
Kiwi
Prepare a large pitcher with lemonade, following package instructions. Fill large glasses with ice and set out a platter of cut-up fruits. Let your guests pile whatever fruits they want on top of their ice, and then fill the glasses with lemonade. When they are done sipping, they’ll have a nice fruit salad to eat!
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And for dessert…..
FLOWERPOT CUPCAKES
I found these adorable, tough, reusable, silicone flower pots online, and once they arrived (and I washed and dried them), I used a boxed muffin mix to fill them, and then a canned frosting to frost them. Who says cheaters never prosper? Lol!
I should have purchased the chocolate rocks when I saw them at Amazon too, because there were none to be found in my little town (I’d insert a little sad face here except I don’t have the cute little emoticon stickers on my computer. I guess I can always paste something from Google…….like this……which actually, surprisingly gives me a tiny bit of satisfaction).
At least we have a Wal-mart, and at least our Wal-mart has a cake isle in the hobbies section with a few choices.
And I found Chocolate mushrooms at FIVE BELOW:
And I had an abundance of MINT growing in my garden!!!! So, I did the Martha Stewart thing! Which was to poke a sprig of mint into each little cupcake after they were all decorated with the other stuff.
After frosting each cupcake, I sprinkled them with crushed Oreos (I whirled a handful of the cookies in my food processor until they turned into dirt), and tinted coconut flakes. I really could have done a better job with the tinting! Made it more green. I’m a dork!
Just look at these chocolate rocks! Gosh, they would have just been sooooo cute to put on top of the oreo dirt! (I’m still sore about it!)
Oh well, “Be content with such things as you have!” Nobody likes a whiner.
(((UPDATE: I found chocolate rocks at Cracker Barrel!!! $2.99 for a 3 oz. tube!!!! And I also found these cute cute cute Gummy Lightning Bugs!!!! Gosh, now I want to toally remake my cupcakes!!!)))
This is what mine looked like….before I poked in my mint leaves!
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After my little luncheon that I hosted I thought of another way to make flowerpot cupcakes that you may like better…
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You can use real terra cotta pots for the trifles, which come in larger-than-cupcake sizes. And since the cake is not being baked in the terra cotta you won’t have to worry about dyes or other toxic elements leaching into your batter in the oven. I soaked my pots in the sink to get the price stickers off, then I put my pots in the dishwasher and ran them through a full sterilizing wash cycle. When they were done I put them in the oven on warm (170*F) to dry them out completely before using.
You can also decorate your pots all pretty before filling them with the trifle ingredients – just something simple that wouldn’t compete with the cuteness of the cakes themselves. Something like this, I was thinking..
Aaaaand…. if you’re feeling especially ambitious, as I was, you can make some cute little flower pot pens to give as gifts for your gal-pals desks, or home offices. Or, even better, let your gal-pals make their own… after lunch. OOOO fun…cRaFt PaRtY!!!!!! 🙂
I found all the stuff for mine at Wal-mart (because seriously, that’s all we have), and when I got my little pots home I soaked them in hot sudsy water to help get the price stickers off. I filled them with aquarium rocks. Then I took a spring assortment of flower bouquets that I found in the floral section, cut them apart, and used floral tape to attach them to my pens. I even found colored ink pens (Bic Cristal).
If you’d like, you can even have a nice little devotion while your eating your lunch!!! Check out this one that I thought was really sweet:
(NOTE: Bible Seeds devotional is now out-of-print, but you can find used copies online.)
“Oh taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that trusts in Him.”
Yes, it will heal, but it will possibly take a lot longer time than you’re going to be happy about. It took about four months for my pain and symptoms to completely disappear.
These are some of the things the Lord led me to try before finally breaking down and getting in to see a doctor:
A heating pad, as soon as it cooled I reheated it
Hot showers, as hot as I could stand and for as long as the hot water lasted
A TENS unit (a really good one), used non-stop until the gel pads dissolved and wouldn’t stick to my skin any more. Don’t think it really helped, but was at least a distraction from the pain.
Deep tissue massages, three visits in two weeks; I don’t recommend deep tissue because the sore muscles only add to the pain issues, and it all seemed to aggrivate the nerves, but a nice Swedish massage with some trigger point may be helpful.
A deep thumping electronic massager, like the TENS unit, not sure how helpful it was, but it was a welcome distraction from the intense pain.
Anti-inflammatory medications, very helpful
A cervical collar, helpful, but only for short periods during the day, helpful at night with a neck pillow and other pillows to prop up under my back.
Pain relieving gels/creams (Salonpas), very helpful
Exercise, helpful, but painful
…and total non-activity, helpful
Everything I researched said DO NOT SEEK A CHIROPRACTOR FOR YOUR NECK (cervical spine) unless your chiropractor is highly skilled in neck treatment. If after fully examining you with x-rays he suggests light traction and physical therapy exercises, ice and heat therapy, massage and trigger point therapy, and even laser treatments (like are used for neuropathy), rather than mentioning an “adjustment,” you’ve got a good Chiropractor. My GP said the back is okay to manipulate, but the neck (cervical vertebrae) should never be “adjusted.”
First things first…POSTURE!!!! It is of utmost importance that you correct your posture. I was a sloucher, and when my pain started I kind of babied it by slumping over. Worst thing I could have done. Sitting at the computer for hours and hours with head forward and arms extended is also the WORST thing!!! Texting, driving, reading a book, writing with head forward…WORST things.
The best way to get correct posture is when standing, to grab a piece of the hair on the very top of your head and give it a tug upward. Imagine that tuft of hair is connected to your spine by a string, and pull your spine into alignment. Keep your head tall, not tipped forward, not backward. Keep your back straight. Let your arms fall to the sides. Support your lumbar when sitting, or lying down.
Right and wrong ways to sit at a desk…
Good walking posture…
If you have a job that requires a lot of sitting at a desk or computer, here are some stretches that you should do to help prevent neck and pinched nerve problems …
And believe it or not, your diet is a huge deal too. I ditched all junk food and crammed my body with superfoods, natural probiotics and electrolytes – especially after doing my exercises and getting a massage. I ate a ton of blueberries, cherries, raisins, and apples – because I craved them. I ate dark chocolate, and Greek yogurt with active enzymes. I crunched on carrots and ate lots of salad (with power greens, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, and vinaigrette dressings) and mostly alkaline foods. And I drank tons of coconut water (the healthy brands without a ton of sugar and preservatives). Quite honestly though, coconut water doesn’t taste very good unless it has some sweetener in it, and it must be ICE cold, but it is much better for you than Gatorade. Also, Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory and you can buy it in capsule form. Fish Oil, with Omega Fatty Acids, is also supposed to be good for inflammation.
I finally sought out a doctor when the pain was unbearable and wasn’t getting any better. As it turns out the doctor that I was able to get in with also knew personally the pain of a pinched nerve and started me down the path to recovery.
I couldn’t sleep in my bed. I couldn’t lie down at all without screaming pain in my neck/back. The only position I seemed to be able to get into that would give me some relief from my pain was to sit in a chair, legs apart, leaned forward as if tying my shoes, resting my head on a pillow on the table in front of me, and letting my arms dangle to my toes between my legs with my palms down and fingers aimed toward me. When husband was home, he would lay my hot pad (microwave flax-seed filled, as hot as possible without burning the seeds) across my shoulders and neck. I would stay in that position until my legs fell asleep. It was truly the most debilitating thing that has ever happened to me. A nightmare!
The pain actually started on Christmas day. I woke up with it that morning. At first it was just a stabbing pain between my left shoulder blade and spine. It felt like someone had stabbed me with a pencil in the Trapezius muscle and wouldn’t take it out. I had range of motion, but was just terribly uncomfortable. In hindsight it might have been from sitting too long in front of the computer working on a project, or it could have been something that I lifted and carried that I shouldn’t have, although neither of those activities alerted me to knowingly injuring myself.
My stabbing pain was accompanied by a little area of numbness just above that felt as if little bugs were crawling under my skin. If I’d have known what to do at this point, boy, I sure would have done it. And now when this kind of pain comes on me I jump on it with the tennis ball treatment. I now use a dog toy size tennis ball, stand with my back up against a wall, and place that ball right in the area of the pain. I lean hard against the ball and use my body to roll it around until I find the offending spasms. Then I do trigger point therapy on that spot, holding the ball hard against that area for several minutes until I feel it kind of relax. Then I use my body to roll the ball around and rub out that area, then go on to feel for more. After 10 or 15 mintues of trigger point therapy I put the ball away, get an ice pack, and lay in a chair against a pillow for support with the ice pack against the place where I rubbed with the tennis ball. I keep the ice on until it isn’t cold any more – about 30 minutes. This has worked well for keeping my back from every progressing to worse pain, as it did that first time.
Not having the tennis ball info for this first spell I thought it would just go away on its own and tried to ignore it. A day or two later the pain began radiating under my shoulder-blade area. It then began to roll down the bones of my left arm like molten lava, first the underside (triceps) part of my arm, to the elbow, and then up and over my forearm (brachioradialis muscle), and down into my wrist. Then it bled into the web between my thumb and pointer finger, and then my pointer finger went numb. That’s when I started thinking it was a pinched (entrapped) nerve.
The bone deep aching nerve pain in my arm was the worst of all. It was the worst at night and nothing I did helped. I wrapped my arm in my hot pad and elevated it. I tried squeezing a ball. I tried ice. I put the TENS unit on it. I wrapped it. I pressed it against the wall at a 90 degree angle with my palm up (my massage therapist suggested this), and that helped a little, and hot hot hot showers seemed to help.
I would have gone to a doctor sooner if I’d have had one, but my primary care physician had just recently closed his practice. I didn’t know any other doctors in my community that were accepting new patients. I live in a community where the doctors require you to fill out an application and after they’ve had a chance to review the application will decide whether they wish to take you as a patient. It is a long, drawn out process.
PLUS, I kept thinking it was getting better.
But every time I thought I was getting better I would do something to set myself back. First set back was a monstrous SNEEZE that undid all the good I felt I had accomplished over the previous two-week period. The second was when I tried to do some yard work and over-did it. The sore muscles irritated the nerve pain. Third was when I grabbed something from a pantry shelf just a little above my head and it caused a jar beside it to tumble off. I flinched and reached to save it from crashing to the floor and once again was on my knees in tears.
I finally found a doctor 40 miles away that could see me. Husband took the day off work and drove me over. It was agony to be in the vehicle for that drive, but finally seeing someone who might be able to help was what got me through it.
He sent me to the hospital for x-rays and prescribed a 6-day steroid. Some muscle relaxers (and even a stronger pain medicine than Ibuprofen) would have been nice, but for whatever reasons he didn’t prescribe them. He did inform me that I could not take both Ibuprofen and Naproxen Sodium together, even staggered, but could stagger whichever one with Tylenol for a short while.
I took the (nasty) 6-day steroid and waited for the results of the x-rays. The doctor never got back to me on the x-rays, but did have the Physical Therapy people contact me to set up an appointment. It was another miserable, 40-mile-each-way trip to see them, but they did tell me the results of my x-ray (which showed only a minor narrowed area, which they said was normal for my age).
Physical Therapy was the thing that healed me! God bless the physical therapists.
I had a wonderful therapist who assessed my pain issues, and measured me for range of motion and pain triggers. She tried to do some traction (which actually hurt me more than helped unfortunately), but she also did a couple of chiropractic maneuvers in the shoulder-blade area that didn’t hurt at all (or really help either). Finally she set me up with some exercises and made me do them during my visit; and then she iced me with a huge cold pack that covered my whole neck and back for about 20 minutes (which felt wonderful, and was very helpful). She told me to use heat whenever, and before doing my exercises (to loosen things up) but then ice afterward for at least 20 minutes. She also gave me a tennis ball to use to roll on my back against a wall and massage the areas that hurt, and work on the trigger points. It worked wonders!!! And icing afterwards helped tons.
She sent me home with a few sheets of the exercises with instructions. And wanted to see me in a week to assess whether the exercises were helpful or not. I’m sharing them with you because they were extremely effective!!!
I also encourage you to search the Internet for blogs and conversations about whatever issue you are dealing with. I found a blog that led me to The Spine Institute which has wonderful information on the McKenzie neck exercises and other issues of the spine, including the sciatic nerve. (I apologize for this guy’s excessive talking, but hang in there for the info. It’s worth it).
I confess I never made it back for another session of Physical Therapy as I ended up coming down with the flu not long after finishing the steroids, and then another flu bug back to back of the first one, both lasted weeks, but I did faithfully do the exercises she gave to me to do every day, and they fixed me!!!! Thank God. No surgery. By the time I was over the flu I was also doing much better with the pinched nerve. It has been four months since this affliction first hit, but I am finally over all my symptoms, and even have regained feeling in my finger. My arm has completely stopped having numb sensations, and no numb spot in my back with the feeling of bugs crawling under my skin.
I try not to sit at my computer for too long before getting up and doing something physical. I don’t text on my phone with my head down. And I watch my posture like a hawk.
Another very helpful thing, certainly the most spiritually helpful, was to meditate on the scriptures in God’s word that speak of healing. Pastor John Hagee has created a You Tube video that was amazing to listen to when I wanted to sleep but was in so much pain…
I hope something here has helped you with your neck pain today. May God speed healing your way. In His precious name I pray for you. God bless.
My granddaughter’s school was invited to Fort Inge Living History Days just outside of Uvalde, TX for a field trip this spring and I was invited to tag along. We’ve actually gotten to do it for three years in a row now and this is my picture compilation from all of our visits.
FORT INGE. Fort Inge (also known as Camp Leona) is on the east bank of the Leona River a mile south of Uvalde in southern Uvalde County. The site is dominated by Mount Inge, a 140-foot volcanic plug of Uvalde phonolite basalt. Archeological evidence indicates the place has been intermittently occupied since the Pre-Archaic period, about 6,000 B.C. It is possible that ranching occurred there in the Spanish colonial and Mexican periods (seeSPANISH TEXAS, MEXICAN TEXAS). On March 13, 1849, frontier artist Capt. Seth Eastman and fifty-six soldiers of companies D and I, First United States Infantry, established camp on the Leona, four miles above Woll’s Crossing. In December 1849 the post was renamed Fort Inge in honor of Lt. Zebulon M. P. Inge, United States Second Dragoons, a West Point officer killed at the Mexican Warbattle of Resaca de la Palma.
Fort Inge was established as a part of the first federal line of frontier forts in Texas. It was to serve as a base of operations for army troops and Texas militia. The missions of the soldiers included security patrols for the construction of the San Antonio-El Paso military road, escorts for supply trains and mail, protection for frontier settlements from bandits and Indian raiders, and guarding the international boundary with Mexico. The fort was a typical one-company, fifty-man post for most of its history. For a brief period in 1854 it was the regimental headquarters for the United States Mounted Rifle Regiment with a garrison of 200. One staff inspector reported that Fort Inge “is justly regarded as one of the most important and desirable positions in Texas. No station of the line possesses so many advantages as this . . . in point of wood, water, and soil . . . It is pre-eminent as a military site. [It is in] a state of constant warfare and constant service.”
Army units and officers of the post include the First Infantry Regiment (1849); Capt. William J. Hardee and Company C, Second Dragoons (1849–52); William A. A. (Bigfoot) Wallace‘s Texas Ranging Company (1850); the United States Mounted Rifle Regiment, under Col. William Wing Loring and captains Gordon Grangerand John G. Walker (1852–55); and the Second United States Cavalry, with Capt.Edmund Kirby Smith and lieutenants Fitzhugh Lee, Zenas R. Bliss, and William B. (Wild Bill) Hazen (1856–61). During the Civil War the post was occupied by Confederate and state units including Walter P. Lane‘s rangers; Company A, C.S.A. Cavalry; and John J. Dix‘s company, Norris Frontier Regiment. The fort was reoccupied by federal troops in 1866, and its final garrisons included Company K,Fourth United States Cavalry (1866–68); Company L, Ninth United States Cavalry; and Lt. John L. Bullis and Company D, Forty-first Infantry (1868–69). The Ninth Cavalry and Forty-first Infantry were black units.
The dozen buildings of the post were arranged around the rectangular parade ground with an enclosed stable at the south end of the post. The most substantial building was constructed of cut limestone and was used as a hospital and later as a storehouse. Most structures were of jacal construction-upright log pickets plastered with mud and whitewashed. A low, dry-stacked stone wall was built around the fort during or after the Civil War.
The establishment of the post in 1849 immediately attracted a number of farmers to the area. In 1853 Reading Wood Black bought land a mile upstream and began the settlement of Encina in 1855. The community was renamed Uvalde in 1856. Fort Inge was closed for federal service on March 19, 1869, and the garrison transferred to Fort McKavett. In 1871 United States troops returned to tear down some of the buildings and recover the timber and stone to be used in construction at Fort Clark. The site was used as a camp by the Texas Rangers until 1884. It was farmland until 1961, when it became Fort Inge Historical Site County Park. From 1980 to 1982 the Uvalde County Historical Commission and local donors sponsored archival research and an archeological project to establish an accurate and detailed history of Fort Inge.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: Arrie Barrett, Federal Military Outposts in Texas, 1846–1861 (M.A. thesis, University of Texas, 1927). George Collins, “Fort Inge,” Junior Historian, September 1950. George S. Nelson, Preliminary Archaeological Survey and Testing of Fort Inge, Texas (Uvalde, Texas: Uvalde County Historical Commission, 1981). Thomas Tyree Smith, Fort Inge (Austin: Eakin Press, 1993).
Published by the Texas State Historical Association
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Our tour started with the Census taker…
The 1850 census saw a dramatic shift in the way information about residents was collected. In 1850, the census began collecting “social statistics” (information about taxes, education, crime, and value of estate, etc.) and mortality data. For the first time, free persons were listed individually instead of by family. There were two questionnaires: one for free inhabitants and one for slaves. According to the US Census bureau these are the questions that would have been asked of persons being counted for the 1850 Census.
Schedule No. 1 – Free Inhabitants
Listed by column number, enumerators recorded the following information:
Number of dwelling house (in order visited)
Number of family (in order visited)
Name
Age
Sex
Color
This column was to be left blank if a person was White, marked “B” if a person was Black, and marked “M” if a person was Mulatto.
Profession, occupation, or trade of each person over 15 years of age
Value of real estate owned by person
Place of Birth
If a person was born in the United States, the enumerator was to enter the state they were born in. If the person was born outside of the United States, the enumerator was to enter their native country.
Was the person married within the last year?
Was the person at school within the last year?
If this person was over 20 years of age, could they not read and write?
Is the person “deaf, dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper, or convict?”
Schedule No. 2 – Slave Inhabitants
Slaves were listed by owner, not individually. Listed by column number, enumerators recorded the following information:
Name of owner
Number of slave
Each owner’s slave was only assigned a number, not a name. Numbering restarted with each new owner
Age
Sex
Color
This column was to be marked with a “B” if the slave was Black and an “M” if they were Mulatto.
Listed in the same row as the owner, the number of uncaught escaped slaves in the past year
Listed in the same row as the owner, the number of slaves freed from bondage in the past year
Is the slave “deaf and dumb, blind, insane, or idiotic?”
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From there we wandered to the stations that were set up…
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The first station on our tour was of the soldier’s quarters
Our tour guide had a display of the items in a typical soldier’s possession, along with a few items of what they mostly carried for rations, and then behind him was a small camp of the tents that they slept in.
On our second tour, the kids got to try on hats, and ask questions, and touch things. Once the kids learned all about the food and sleeping quarters, and what a soldier might carry on him on the battlefield, they were lined up for drills. Each student was given their own rifle (wooden replica) and then the hooligans were led through a series of drills. ATTENTION! Admittedly, they might need a little more practice, but not bad for their first time out.
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Moving on to textiles…
At the next station the kids learned about yarn and thread and sowing and embroidery.
They learned about all the types of materials used to make thread and yarn, how it was brushed and washed to remove seeds and bugs and dirt, and then how it was spun into yarn or fine thread, which could then be woven into fabric and sewn into clothing, coats, hats, and under garments, as well as made into rugs or blankets and such.
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And then we learned how folks kept all of their clothes and linens, and themselves, CLEAN!
The children learned about soup making: making lye, rendering fat, and adding perfumes; scrubbing and laundering, drying, ironing, and that whole lovely business. And boy did it smell good at that station!!!
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Next on the tour was weaponry…
Here was a fairly massive display of hand guns, rifles, shotguns, hatchets, and knives, used for hunting and military action. The kids even got to touch things. Ha! Pretty cool!
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We missed the firing of the cannon the first year of our tour, but on our third we had the good fortune of getting to experience all however many decibles of it.
Here is a video of the cannon being fired at Fort Inge Living History Days from several years ago…
Holy moley! COVER YOUR EARS!
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And next door to this was the Officer’s Quarters…
Like the soldier’s station, this one showed the items that were typical for an officer to have with him, and showed his slightly larger and nicer sleeping and private quarters.
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At the next station the kids enjoyed doing some CHORES…
The kids learned about making rope, fetching water from a well, taking dried corn off the cob and grinding it into cornmeal.
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Once they were finished with their chores they were allowed to run along to school…
…where they learned all about READING, WRITING, and ‘RITHMATIC!!! Teachers were required to be single back in those days and usually came from out-of-town and lived with a family in the community during the school season. The people of the community all chipped in to help pay her a salary, usually about $25 month. Children attended school when their chores were done, so they came and went all throughout the day. Students worked through their studies at their own pace, graduating to the next book once they were proficient in the beginner books. They practiced their handwriting and math problems on a slate with chalk. They also learned to write with pen and ink and the teacher gave a demonstration of the care of the pen and keeping of the ink, which was a precious thing in those days.
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If there was any time left after chores and school, these were some of the toys that kids got to play with back in those days…
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The next two stations were the kitchens…
In this kitchen the men were making stews and soups, hot coffee, and hot boiling water for dishwashing.
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Next door to the hot stove was the other part of the kitchen, where the other preparations are made and the eating takes place…
In this kitchen our host was churning butter, and she told the kids about some of the baking and preserving (jams, jellies, pickles, etc.) done in those days.
She had made some molasses cookies and applesauce pies earlier that morning that made our mouths water.
She taught the kids about all sorts of period kitchen gadgets, and after we were gone, all of the volunteers would be sitting down to a nice prairie picnic of all the foods that were prepared in these kitchens that day. I loved all the beautiful Blue Willow dishes and pretty tablecloths.
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I think we walked past a station set up for blacksmithing…
(Everyone in our group needed to use the potty, and were all starving to death for lunch after seeing all that yummy smelling cooking), but there was soooo much more to see!
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These are some of the signs that are posted in various areas of the fort
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This year we all got to experience a real Military TELEGRAPH station…
…which uses Morse Code to send and receive messages. My have things improved since then. Probably almost everyone on tour this day over the age of 12 had a cell phone in their pocket, which they could use to send text messages wirelessly.
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And also this year we got to see a real Teepee set up…
…with a Native man inside who gave an interesting presentation of the history of his people in the area.
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And then there was the lady with the Dulcimer…
…who played beautiful music for the students. What a treat! She took requests and played her instrument flawlessly while all the kids sang along, hymns and popular songs of the period that the children would be familiar with.
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The last stop on our visit was around the hedgerow to see the camels…
Please click on the link to learn more about the US Army’s Great Camel Experiment from this Facebook Page.
Our guide for this Camel exhibit was very entertaining. He played a couple songs on his guitar and sang for us. He was very engaging. The kids really enjoyed him, but I think what they would have loved more would have been to touch and ride the camels!
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We ended our visit with a final climb on the rocks by an old outbuilding…
…and then headed off to our own picnic lunch in the park in town!!!!!!
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Thanks so much for stopping by and learning about our little town’s neat little old soldier fort. You’ll have to plan a visit out sometime during Living History Days in the spring. Also, you might like to visit Fort Clark in Brackettville. And if you can find it, this is a neat book written about Fort Inge that was given to us by relatives of the author.
And he said, “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My savior, Thou dost save me from violence. “I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; And I am saved from my enemies.”
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour (or I use baker’s spray) a 10 X 15” or 9 X 13” pan.
In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, cocoa powder, and water. Stir occasionally while bringing just to the boiling point and remove from heat. Pour over flour mixture. Beat with a mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla and beat for about another minute. The batter will be thin.
Pour into prepared baking pan, and bake in preheated oven approximately 20-25 minutes until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool. I like to make my cake the night before, cover it with foil, and keep in the refrigerator until ready to frost.
Frosting
3 cups Confectioners’ (powdered) sugar
1 cup butter (room temp)
1 teaspoon Vanilla (pure)
½ block (or 4 oz.) of cream cheese (room temp)
Place sugar and butter in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on low speed until blended, then for 3 minutes on medium speed. Add vanilla and cream cheese and continue beating on medium speed a few minutes more until fluffy and creamy.
Affix the Wilton tip 3 (small hole) to a frosting piping/decorating bag as per package instructions. With a rubber spatula, transfer the frosting to the bag. Squeeze the frosting out onto the cooled cake in swirls until the entire top of the cake if covered.
Decorate
…with Ferrero Rocher Fine Hazelnut Chocolates, and Raspberry Fruit Spread. Unwrap the chocolates (about 12) and place them randomly on top of the frosted cake. Give the Raspberry Fruit Spread a good stir and then spoon it over the chocolates, pooling it over and all around each to look like meatballs with spaghetti sauce.
This is what it should look like when you are done…
Hey, and by the way…. not only is this a fun dessert to fool your friends, but it’s also just a dang delicious cake!!!! Enjoy!!!!! 🙂
“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Psalm 14:1a
I’m a grandma! <I say, with a huge grin on my face> Can I just say that so far in life being a grandma is just about as good as I could have ever imagined. I am completely smitten with these little granddaughters of ours! Completely and utterly smitten! And I’ve decided that getting to be a grandma must be God’s way of saying, I forgive you for all the mistakes you made with your own kids, and I’m giving you a second chance with grandchildren. Don’t screw it up!
I don’t know that I have any more patience with them than I had with my own kids. And I can’t say that I let them get away with murder at my house, because I honestly couldn’t live with them expecting to get things all the time. But after grandpa and I have loved on them, and spoiled them just a little, and are pretty much give-out chasing after them for a day or a night, we can send them back to their parents and then go take a nap. And that’s the beauty of grandparenting. 🙂
As far as throwing a baby shower, I take my ques from my oldest daughter Dani. She threw the first baby shower for her sister, and had so much energy and charisma through the whole process. She is just gosh darn good at everything she puts her hand to. She tossed an amazing, fun party together in about an hour (including the decorating), and even between gadding about with her friends, whom she hadn’t seen since high school, and her party turned out so magnificently I can’t even tell you. I’m such a poser!
But, in the shadow of her genius, I tossed a Texas version together – in a bigger house, and a bigger yard, and a slightly plumper guest list!
Decorations
The party I threw was half indoors and half outdoors on what turned out to be a beautiful south Texas spring evening! Indoors was the food (to keep it cool and away from the bugs), and outdoors were the games. I used old baby food jars, placed tea-lite candles in each, lit them, and scattered them around on the buffet table inside, and the tables outside. The tables outside sat under an Easy-up portable gazebo which was decorated with balloons and streamers and pretty pink ribbon. I covered the outdoor tables with little baby blankets (from when my babies were little – quilted ones, knit ones, crocheted ones, tied ones, store bought and homemade) and used rolled up baby diapers tied with ribbon and Baby Bottle vases for centerpieces, along with some of the little baby food jar tea-lites. Indoors I layered a black and white tablecloth over a solid pink tablecloth for the serving table, and placed a few potted plants and a bouquet of roses around with the baby food jar tea-lites.
I hung up a small “clothesline” across the yard here and there and hung some cloth diapers, onesies, baby blankets, and little bibs on it, with old fashioned clothespins tied with pink ribbon and bows?
I set up a CD player outside that had *lullaby music playing softly and continuously in the background during the party. (*I used the Rock-a-bye Baby and Hush-a-bye Baby CDs. If you’ve not heard of them, they are the songs of country and rock musicians remade into lovely little xylophone lullaby melodies. So sweet for a Baby Shower party, and after the party they make a great parting gift for the mother!)
Refreshments
GOURMET CUPCAKES: I cheated and used a cake mix and baked up 24 cupcakes. Then I swirled store-bought frosting on them in two colors, white and pink, using a zip-lock bag with the corner snipped off. I sprinkled them with pink sprinkles and decorated them with mini York peppermint patties and fresh mint leaves from my garden. Then displayed them in cute little swirly cupcake stands that made a perfect presentation and centerpiece for the buffet.
FINGER SANDWICHES: my neighbor and friend Sharon made some finger sandwiches with cream cheese and green olives, and I don’t know what else, but they were delish.
FRUIT SALAD: I cut a baby carriage shape out of a watermelon, decorated it with pink ribbon, then filled it with chunks of fresh seasonal fruits (melon, grapes, pineapple, berries, kiwi, etc.). I made a fresh yogurt, honey, and lime dressing to drizzle on top.
VEGGIES: I did little individual crudités using little see-thru plastic tumblers, placing a small amount of dip in the bottom, and then arranging cut vegetables (carrot, celery, snow peas, asparagus, bell pepper, etc.) vertically in each.
PUNCH: tea, lemonade, and lots of ice.
Games
These first four games below began right away as guests arrived, but did not have a winner until the end of the party. Each game was set up at a seperate station in my house, and a little pink footprint trail led the guests from first station near the front door (diaper name tags), to the next (Mommy Measure Game), and the next (Pacifier Necklaces), through my house, and ended at the food table near the back door, where a little sign welcomed them to help themselves to the refreshments, and asked them to place one frozen baby ice cube in their drink.
This was the best way I could come up with to be in all places at the same time – greeting guests as they arrived, hugging and welcoming them, pinning a name tag on each one, and then sending them on to some entertainment while we waited for everyone to arrive. By the time the last guests arrived, everyone would have had things to do, food and beverages to nibble and sip, time to mingle with each other, and would be ready for the games to begin.
Dirty Diaper Name Tags: I made little diapers out of white felt or flannel and pinned them closed with a diaper safety pin. Before I pinned the last one shut I smeared a little streak of brown marker in it Then I mixed the marked one in with the others so I wouldn’t know which one it was. As the guests arrived, I pinned the little diapers on each (you can jot their names on them if your guests don’t know each other). At the end of the party I asked my guests to look inside their name tags. The one with the dirty diaper won a prize.
Mommy Measure Game: Using ribbon, string, or a store-bought game, each guest sections off however much length of the material as they think will take to wrap around the mommy’s belly. They’ll cut their piece and then label it with their name, and leave it in the designated place. At the end of the evening, whoever’s piece comes closest to the actual measurement is the winner.
Pacifier necklace Game: This game is played by giving each guest a necklace and announcing that the forbidden word is “baby.” Anyone caught by another player using the forbidden word loses their necklace to the player who caught them. No one is ever out, because even if you lose your necklace, you can gain a necklace back by catching someone saying the forbidden word. The person with the most necklaces at the end of the party wins.
My Water Broke: The day before the party place little plastic babies in ice cube trays, and then fill the trays with water and freeze. Once everyone has helped themselves to cold beverages, have them drop one of the frozen baby ice cubes into their drink, but don’t tell them why yet. (The first person whose baby melts free is the winner).
Once all of my guests had gotten name tags, measured off a length of ribbon for the mommy measure game, gotten themselves a necklace and a plate of food, and dropped a baby ice cube into each of their drinks, I came and explained the rules for the necklaces and the baby ice cubes. These games played in the background of all the other games for the duration of the evening.
These next several games will have winners right away. Try to keep things moving along so no one gets bored, but be somewhat flexible for those players that are a little slower.
What is it?: You will need 10 brown paper lunch bags (numbered 1-10) and 10 random baby items (diaper pins, pacifier, diaper ointment, baby bottle, teething ring, rattle, mittens, nail clipper, thermometer, disposable diaper, baby powder, baby lotion, receiving blanket, onesie, etc. all removed from their packaging), and a sheet of paper for each guest with 1-10 numbered along the left side, and a pens for each. Make sure each bag has only one item in it and is sealed (taped, stapled, and fastened with a pretty ribbon). Pass the bags around and allow the guests to try to figure out what is in the bag. After 30 seconds shake a baby rattle for the guests to pass the bags. When everyone has written their guesses down, Set a nice basket beside the mom-to-be and have her open each bag to reveal what’s in it, placing the items in the basket. Give a gift to the person with the most correct guesses, and mom gets to keep the basket contents.
Nursery Rhyme Fill-in: Make up a sheet of lines from nursery rhymes (get a book from Wal-mart if you need one) leaving out a word or line for your guests to complete. You can either hand out game sheets to each guest and give them time to complete them, then read the nursery rhymes out loud and ask if anyone had something different…OR…you can play this game like a game show where players are seated and the first to stand must give an answer. You can either read the title of a rhyme and let your guests see if they can recite the rhyme, or read part of the rhyme and have them fill in the missing word or line. The first guest to stand up must give an answer. If they are right, you tally them a point. If they are wrong they sit down and the others race to stand up and answer. When you are out of rhymes, the person who answered the most correctly wins a prize.
Baby Food Tasting: With as much class and sophistication as a wine tasting, you will offer this game. Take the labels off a variety of baby foods (12 is good – 3 of each food-group: veggie, fruit, cereal, dessert) and replace with a number. (Make yourself a master sheet as you are doing this, so you remember which is which and can show it to the guests at the end). Give each guest a sheet of paper with 1-12 listed along the left side, and pen, and 12 plastic tasting spoons per person (ask them to not reuse spoons). Pass the baby food jars and give everyone time to make their guesses. They may taste, smell, look at, jiggle, stir, or use whatever way they want to distinguish what food it is. You can provide a list of multiple choices if you want to help them out a little, just make sure some of the choices on the list are different from the foods so it’s not too easy. The person who gets the most right wins.
The Hen Party Game: Perhaps you’ve seen it on YouTube? It is the plunger and toilet paper game. Need two rolls of toilet paper and two brand new toilet plungers. Split guests into two teams. Each team sends a player to the other side of the yard with a roll of toilet paper. She then places the toilet paper between her thighs/knees. The remaining members of the teams line up behind a leader and the person at the front of the line places the toilet plunger between their thighs with the handle sticking out in front of them. At the sound of the baby rattle the two plunger people must run down to their teammate without losing the plunger and attempt to poke the plunger handle into the hole of the toilet paper roll. Once they are successful, the plunger person takes the toilet paper and the toilet paper person runs the plunger back to the team for the next person to relay down the track. The first team to finish wins.
Baby Bottle Game: Fill baby bottles (one for each guest) with cranberry juice or tea. If you want, you could use the previous game’s winning team as contestants for this game to compete in this chugging contest in front of everyone. Just to be ornery, plug up the tip on one of the baby bottles with super glue prior to the party. At the sound of baby rattle players begin chugging from the baby bottles. The one who finishes first is the winner. See also how creative the person is who got stuck with the plugged bottle, and give them an award for being a good sport.
Sniff-a- Poo game: You’ll need 6 clean disposable diapers labeled 1-6 and 6 different snack size candy bars (Mounds, Baby Ruth, Snickers, Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, Milky Way, York Peppermint Patty, Three Musketeers, etc.). Place one candy bar in each diaper and microwave each diaper for 20 seconds. Stir the candy around and microwave another 10 seconds. Give each player a slip of paper numbered 1 to 6 down the left side, a pen, and 6 plastic tasting spoons per person (ask them to not reuse spoons).. Set the six diapers in front of the guests and allow them to look, smell, taste, and touch each “poopy” diaper in an attempt to identify the contents. Take lots of pictures! The person with the most correct answers wins a prize.
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After the outdoor games, I invited everyone back inside and asked them to please refill their drinks and plates at the buffet, and then asked them to take a chair (bean bags, rocker, couch, ottoman, kitchen chairs, etc.) in a big circle around my living room to watch the mom-to-be open her gifts. One of the guests graciously offered to make a list of each gift and who gave it, so I gratefully provided the notebook paper and pen. Once all the gifts were opened, and the food and drinks were devoured, I awarded the prizes for the name tags, measuring game, and necklace game, and also gave out the little parting gifts (babyfood jars with jellybeans in them). Then I asked if we could all stand and hold hands and close by saying a prayer for the mom-to-be. I led the prayer but also left it open for anyone else who felt led to pray. One by one each guest hugged the mom-to-be, and started making their departures. It really was a fun party, and I was so blessed by all the compliments… which is why I decided to share it with you.
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Prizes (need at least eight)
Little Bathroom soaps in a basket
Chap sticks and Lotions
Small Cookbook
A Gift Certificate for a specialty coffee (Starbucks or another local place)
A Women’s Magazine
A pretty necklace
Small bouquet of flowers
Scented Candle
Assortment of tea bags
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Party Favors (as many as you have guests)
Send each guest home with a baby food jar filled with jelly beans and ask them to say a prayer for the momma and baby every time they eat a bean.
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Be Prepared
Purchase everything you will need for the games. Read through each game carefully and make a list. Purchase all the prizes and party favors – or make the party favors. Purchase all your groceries and try to make everything the day before, if possible. Purchase everything you will need to decorate or make decorations, and make the decorations. Give yourself time to groom the yard (the day before), clean the house (the day before), and do all the decorating (early in the day). Purchase paper plates, napkins, cups, plastic utensils, ice, serving pieces, flowers, balloons, etc. Set up all the games the night before. Set up the food table right before guests arrive, keeping things covered and cold, and in the shade, or keep the food inside (which is what I did to avoid flies). Set out all the table service and place a paper weight on the napkins and plates – or tie them up in pretty bundles.
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PARTY SCHEDULE (plan for the party to last about 2 hours)
Guests arrive: pin a diaper name tag on each and encourage them to mingle pointing them to the little pink footprint trail (like a yellow brick road – follow the yellow brick road!).
Make sure each guest gets something to drink and helps themselves to the sandwiches and snacks that have been set out.
Ice Breaker: Introduce everyone if your guests don’t know each other, and maybe tell how they each know the mother-to-be.
Play the games in the order listed on the previous pages. Keep a fairly quick pace with the games and activities, so there is no time for boredom. I tried to alternate sitting games with active games and quiet games with loud and fun games to keep it interesting. And also tried to find games that would be amusing.
Invite guests to help themselves to more food if desired, and make sure everyone’s beverage is full as often as possible.
Award prizes at the end, if they weren’t awarded at the end of each game, and give each guest a small party favor.
Let Mom-to-be open gifts.
Gather around the Mom-to-be to pray for her and the little one, for a safe delivery and a healthy, perfect baby. Allow guests to hang and visit as long as they wish. Hug everyone goodbye and thank them so much for coming. Put away the foods that need refrigeration. Pass out from exhaustion!
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Alternative Games for your party
Baby items scavenger hunt: Hide several Baby items in and around the house. Create a scavenger hunt for guests to find these items. Guests may compete against everyone individually, or you can pair people off in 2-person or 3-person teams. First person/team to find all of the items wins.
Memory game: First guest says a word or phrase, second guest says the first word/phrase and then their word/phrase, the third guest says both previous words/phrases and then adds theirs. Play continues around the table until someone forgets a word/phrase, then they are out. Play continues until one person is left having memorized the whole thing.
Itty Bitty Baby Parts Baby Shower Game: Baby shower games step into the 21st century with this high tech, offbeat Ultrasound picture challenge. You will find that people say the darndest things when they try to identify the itty bitty baby parts in this contemporary baby shower game. Identifying these parts isn’t as easy as it may seem and your friends will be chuckling for days afterwards at some of the oddball responses! People say the darndest things! Itty Bitty Baby Parts baby shower game brings those sometimes hilarious answers out into the open. Your friends and family will enjoy hearing the responses of the other players while they try to identify the images.
Entertaining and affordable. Itty Bitty Baby Parts baby shower game can be purchased from http://www.bigdotofhappiness.com and comes complete with 12 ultrasound picture cards, word lists(25 player sheets for 25 guests), directions and answer page. Itty Bitty Baby Parts (Ultrasound Picture Game) $13.99
Baby Bingo Baby Shower Game: Yea! Finally! A bingo baby shower game with Pizazz! With Pep! With, with… spunkatudinality! In this 20 card version, guests are handed colorful cards with baby themed pictures: a crib, a birth certificate, stroller, baby blocks, etc. The first person to get five in a row and yell “Baby Bingo” wins. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this baby shower game has got to be worth Millions!
There are 2 squares on each card which allow each guest to write in the name of the mom-to-be and her (expectant) due date. The mom will beam with pride and joy every time she hears her name and baby’s due date called during each game.
20 Card Baby Bingo comes complete with:
20 unique bingo cards
80 perforated caller chips
390 heart markers
Master call sheet
Instructions
Cards measure 5-1/4″ x 6-1/2″ h each.
Diaper raffles are the hot new baby shower activity! Use our baby raffle tickets – baby shower game to ensure your diaper raffle goes off without a hitch! Hand out raffle tickets to each guest who brings a pack of diapers. You could give one ticket per every 5, 10, or 20 diapers they bring. Have them write their name on the tickets and collect them. At some point during the celebration, draw tickets to give away special prizes. Guests will love their odds when they arrive with the all-important diapers! You could pass out tickets for other items as well – bibs, onesies, blankets, and much more!
Baby Raffle Tickets – Baby Shower Game ~ $8.99 each game
(150 tickets per package in six designs) available from http://www.bigdotofhappiness.com.
Raffle Methods
There are a few different ways to set up a raffle at a baby shower. Tickets for the event can be “sold” based on the basic baby-care items that guests bring, or can be given to everyone who arrives in a manner similar to door prize drawings. One commonly used option is the holding of a “diaper raffle,” where an extra ticket is given for every five, 10 or 20 diapers given. The same could be done with single bottles, onesies, pacifiers or even common goods such as soaps, shampoos and lotions. A winning ticket will be drawn toward the end of the baby shower, though some planners may decide to have multiple drawings and give away smaller prizes leading up to the “Grand Prize.”
Tummy Measure Gameby Factory Card and Party Outlet
An immeasurably fun shower game! Our Tummy Measure Game features 150ft – 2 1/2” W plastic yellow measuring tape (number are not printed on tape) with the words “What Size is the New Mommy’s Tummy?” Simply have guests cut a length of the tape by guessing the mommy-to-be’s tummy and the closest fitting tape wins.
Wilton Baby Shower Spin Gameby Wilton
Play this fun game at the baby shower. It’s a great way to break the ice and get the party started. Guests spin the bottle and do as the spot on the card asks. Some of the spaces say: Suggest 10 Baby Names; Give Mom-to-be Baby Advice; Relax and do Nothing; Sing a Lullaby; Whistle a Baby Song; Say the ABC’s Backwards; Recite a Nursery Rhyme; Repeat 5 Times: (a tongue twister).
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“Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” Psalm 127:3
When I lived in the Rockies I used to spend pretty much every weekend in April and May (and even some years in June) sipping my morning coffee by my front windows and gazing outside at the dead, gray landscape, wishing (oh so desperately wishing) for spring, as winter relentlessly lingered. All I could think about was busting outside to push the lawnmower around in my yard, dig out the rotting leaves that had blown in around my porch, plant and fertilize my spring bulbs, and tidy up my dormant yard. I could almost hear thunder and lightning in my mind, and with feverish delirium I built castles in the clouds for the return of the robins and squirrels games, and the mommy & daddy birds fluffing their feathers, gathering twigs, and chirping their springtime songs. I swooned over what to grow in my gardens, my mouth still salivating at the evaporating memory of last year’s harvest.
Being in south Texas, I now whence at how overwrought I was for the scent of fresh washed anything to be hanging on my clotheslines. I haven’t forgotten though how badly I wanted to crank those frozen windowsills open, throw back the curtains, air out the dust and cobwebs, and let a little sunshine in. If only by my shear will I could have held back winter and coaxed those leaves to bud out on the trees, or tantalized my daffodils to bloom, or tempted the grass to creep up out of the earth, lush and green.
Almost anything was better than shoveling snow AGAIN, or sloshing in slush, or looking out at barren trees, or being cooped up inside torturing myself with the fallen mercury on the outdoor thermometer. “Oh hurry up spring,” was my daily mantra.
And then finally it was here.
Well, my dear, north-country friends, I know you are suffering now, but come sit on my south Texas porch swing (I wish this was my porch and my porch swing) for a bit, kick your sandals off, and have a slushy lemonade with me? I’m just reminiscing over my garden parties of yesterday and would love your company!
It’s a funny thing, but as soon as the words “garden party” roll off my tongue I am humming the song by Ricky Nelson…“Come to a Garden Party; reminisce with my old friends….” Hee hee, I can see you do too! Shall we hold hands and sway and sing it together?
I went to a garden party to reminisce with my old friends A chance to share old memories and play our songs again When I got to the garden party, they all knew my name No one recognized me, I didn’t look the same
CHORUS: But it’s all right now, I learned my lesson well. You see, ya can’t please everyone, so ya got to please yourself
People came from miles around, everyone was there Yoko brought her walrus, there was magic in the air ‘n’ over in the corner, much to my surprise Mr. Hughes hid in Dylan’s shoes wearing his disguise
CHORUS
lot-in-dah-dah-dah, lot-in-dah-dah-dah
Played them all the old songs, thought that’s why they came No one heard the music, we didn’t look the same I said hello to “Mary Lou”, she belongs to me When I sang a song about a honky-tonk, it was time to leave
Someone opened up a closet door and out stepped Johnny B. Goode Playing guitar like a-ringin’ a bell and lookin’ like he should If you got’ta play at garden parties, I wish you a lot’ta luck But if memories were all I sang, I rather drive a truck
‘n’ it’s all right now, learned my lesson well You see, ya can’t please everyone, so you got to please yourself
Wow…I didn’t mean to sing the whole dang song…. Sorry. The lyrics are kind of odd, aren’t they? Hee hee! 🙂
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I recently finished a Bible study of the book of Esther, written by Beth Moore and since it is so fresh in my mind I thought to share with you a garden party on steroids:
KING AHASHURAS’ GARDEN PARTY
“…The king made a feast lasting seven days for all the people who were present in Shushan…in the court of the garden of the king’s palace.” — Esther 1:5
A seven-day feast. Holy cow! (…Possible pun intended). My, oh my, he sure knows how to arrange things! This is how King Ahashuras decorated for his party: “There were white and blue linen curtains fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on silver rods and marble pillars; and the couches were of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of alabaster, turquoise, and white and black marble. And they served drinks in golden vessels, each vessel being different from the other, with royal wine in abundance, according to the generosity of the king.” (Esther 1:6-7). The drinking was not compulsory, but according to each man’s pleasure…soooooo, I’m guessing, since the booze was free, that it was each man’s pleasure TO DRINK!
After the king’s “garden party” came another feast. It was for his officials and servants – the powers of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the princes of the 127 provinces over which he now ruled. This feast lasted 180 days, (holy smokes – did you catch that? 180 DAYS!!!). I can’t even imagine how much food and wine he dished out for a 180-day party! My goodness, that’s almost six months. How does one entertain guests for that long? What do you suppose they talked about? How many bedrooms do you imagine he must have had in his house to make the princes and nobles of 127 provinces comfortable, not to mention the sheer volume of bath towels they must have gone through!
Being a hot-shot, he entertained by giving his guests the grand tour of his sprawling estate, showing off his riches, splendor, and majesty, as if the food, booze, and decorations weren’t enough of a brag.
It all reminds me a little of Oprah’s Garden Party, which you perhaps caught on television some years back? The Queen of daytime talk TV wanted to pay homage to some special ladies in her life whom she admired, but in the process couldn’t help showing off a little of her great wealth, lavishing them with an exquisite menu, costly gifts, and luxuriant preparations. You can read all about it at Oprah.com.
The term “garden party” does tend to stir up in my head notions of big Queen Mumm hats, lush flower gardens, and dainty little porcelain teacups brimming with exotic teas, accompanied with a myriad of condiments to add to them, like pure white, sparkling sugar cubes, dew covered mint leaves, juicy lemon slices, and fresh, succulent raspberries.
In my dreams my tables are covered with layers of lace and floral patterned tablecloths. Bouquets of flowers, topiaries and ivy centerpieces. The chairs all around are covered in cloth and ribbon. And there are twinkling lights and lanterns hanging from the trees.
Marlene Allan – Garden Party Online has some fun ideas too. I really liked the idea of spreading picnic blankets on the lawn and resting a large umbrella at each. The edges of the umbrellas are also decked out with flowers.
I found these garden party themes and ideas at Evite.com:
Garden of Eden—It doesn’t have to be clothing optional to evoke the spirit of Adam and Eve’s home. Serve a bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables, and decorate with snakes and apples.
Plant Swap—Celebrate your garden by asking guests to bring a flower arrangement or potted plant to swap with another guest. Guests can either fight over the foliage or pick names out of a hat to see who gets what.
Flower Arranging—Ask guests to bring blooms and vases, and invite a floral expert or a friend with very green thumbs to show you different ways of putting them together.
“Seeds of Kindness” Garden Party – was another terrific discovery. Visit this website for all the details: http://www.juliabettencourt.com/themes/kindnesstheme.html.
This is a garden theme that revolves around our planting seeds of kindness. Her emphasis is on being kinder and more caring Christian women. I won’t spill the beans, but hope you will check out all her swell ideas.
Unlike the garden parties of the rich and famous, mine have all been either merriments of Mother’s Day, or low-budget baby/wedding showers, so don’t be intimidated. You can afford this!
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Garden Party 2007
Decorations: I hung plastic/silk flower strands that I found at the dollar store in swags along the patio eves. I did the same along the edges of the patio umbrella and table. I set out a few flower arrangements in baskets. I spent a decent block of time mowing and trimming and grooming my back yard so it would resemble the ritzy landscapes in the rich parts of town. There is no way it could possibly compare, but it looked its personal best anyway. I pulled all the weeds and watered until the grass was green green green. I planted the flower boxes with colorful blooms and foliage and piled them up with mulch just like the gardeners on TV. I wished I’d had a pretty gazebo that I could have lavished with tulle and silk flowers, or a lovely little pond and waterfall that would have drawn our eyes and trickled in our ears. Even a heavy cast bird bath would have been great. But I had to be content with such things as I had.
GRILLED PORTOBELLO SANDWICHES
Ingredients
Ciabata bread, drizzled with olive oil and lightly toasted
Portobello Mushroom caps, grilled and placed on top of the bread
Red onion slices, grilled and placed on top of the portobello
Fontina cheese, melted on top of the onion in the broiler
Fresh Basil leaves, arranged on top of the cheese
Tomato slices, drizzled with a balsamic/garlic/olive oil/black pepper dressing
VEGGIE PLATTER
Red, Yellow, and Green Bell Peppers sliced into wedges
Radish halves
Ranch dip
FRUIT KABOBS
Watermelon
Cantaloupe
Honeydew
Pineapple
Banana
Grapes
Cut fruit into wedges and skewer on wooden spears. Arrange kabobs on a pretty platter
SUN CHIPS
BEVERAGES
Iced Tea
Sodas
Lemonade
SUGAR COOKIES cut and frosted to look like pansies, arranged on a pretty doily covered platter. OR…those flowerpot cakes that are made with Oreo crumbs and the gummy worms on top would also have made a clever dessert for this soirée. (Click here for a how-to video for Pansy Sugar Cookies)
MUSIC: I ended up being a little too pinched for time to give the music selection a proper scavenge. So we started with a peaceful classical guitar CD and ended up with golden oldies music on satellite radio. I’ve since had a little more time to look and here’s the thoughtful lineup I found:
At a Garden Party, Ed Bickert
Garden Party, Rick Nelson
The Last Dance, Music for a Vanishing Era
Radiance, Music for a Garden Party (Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, Dvorak, etc.)
And Dan Gibson’s Solitudes Classical Garden, featuring the sounds of nature with music
Or… we could make a homemade CD or create an i-tunes playlist to play at the party. If the garden party is to celebrate Mother’s Day, you could give the music mix to Mom afterward. Buy MP3 singles from Amazon.com and burn them onto one CD. Here are a few suggestions:
Anita Renfroe, The Mom Song (Momisms)
Boyz II Men, a Song for Mama
Chris Young , Voices
Carry Underwood, Mama’s Song
Brad Paisley, She’s Everything
Carry Underwood, Don’t Forget to Remember Me
Dolly Pardon, Coat of Many Colors
Jamie O’Neal, Somebody’s Hero
LeAnn Womack, I Hope You Dance
Rascal Flats, My Wish
Martina McBride, In My Daughter’s Eyes
Merle Haggard, Mama Tried
Taylor Swift, The Best Day
Trace Adkins, One Hot Mama
Trace Adkins, You’re Gonna Miss This
Trace Adkins, She Thinks We’re Just Fishin’
Beyonce, Halo
Celine Dion, A New Day Has Come
Loudon Wainwright III, Daughter
Lonestar, Mr. Mom
Martina McBride, Blessed
Edwin McCain, I Could Not Ask for More Sara Evans, Always Be My Baby LeAnn Rimes, How Do I Live Carrie Underwood (feat. Randy Travis), I Told You So Guns n Roses, Sweet Child of Mine
Alicia Keys, Superwoman
Aerosmith, Don’t Want to Miss a Thing
CRAFT: After our luncheon I gathered the girls up and moved our party to the far side of the yard where I had a craft project set up – making garden stepping-stones. I laid out all the decorations (small stones, marbles, jewels, beads, mosaic tiles, sea shells, tools, etc.) and the cement forms, one for each person. I mixed up cement in a wheelbarrow with water and mixed in a little cement dye to give our stones a kind of adobe look.
After I poured the cement into each form (pizza boxes) we got busy decorating. We started with pressing our handprints (footprints) into the center, and then we started arranging little decorations around it and carving designs into the wet concrete.
We all pitched in to make a stone for my sister who died the April before. We also made one for my other sister who lives far far away. With hers I asked if she could send a paper tracing of her hand that we could use to press into the cement, and also if she could send some decorations for us to use in her stone, and if possible draw us a pattern of how she would like us to decorate it. The finished products needed to set-up and then dry without being moved for at least 24 hours, so my guests left their creations with me for delivery on another day. I later delivered all of them to my mom’s yard and we set them along a lazy path in her beautiful gardens.
GIFTS: I paired a devotional book with a little watering can and filled it with garden tools, gloves, and seeds, for a hip little gift set. I found my small inexpensive watering cans at Big Lots, along with the low-cost garden utensils, gloves, and packets of seeds. I put the tools down into the watering cans, squeezed in the pair of gloves, and tucked two seed packets in the top. I tied a THANK YOU card to the handles with macramé twine. Then I gave them to my mom and sister. I also placed one on my neighbor’s door step, and made another for a girlfriend. And while I was at it, I thought they would make nice end-of-the-year gifts for each of the teachers I worked with in an elementary school, so I made three more.
The devotional books I purchased several years ago were from Crossings and are unfortunately no longer in print, but they can be found used sometimes on eBay or Amazon.com, or other out-of-print, or used book stores. They paired really well with the watering cans to make a thoughtful gift.
Bible Seeds, A Simple Study-Devotional for Growing in God’s Word
From the Creators of the God’s Word for the Biblically-Inept ™ Series
Starburst Publishers, ISBN 0-7394-2142-5
Bible Seeds for Enriching Your Character,
A Simple Study-Devotional for Growing in God’s Word
From the Creators of the God’s Word for the Biblically-Inept ™ Series
Starburst Publishers, ISBN 0-7394-3048-3
Isn’t this a neat idea? A Fruit Pizza Bar!!!! Love it!
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Garden Party 2008
This Mother’s Day I invited my mom, sister, her daughter, my other three nieces, my grand-niece, my sister’s mother-in-law, and my nephew’s wife. It was a full house.
And for this year’s garden party I planned a “kiddie pool pedicure party” where all my guests would sit in lawn chairs in a circle outside around our kiddie pool filled with hot sudsy water and perfumed bath salts and floating flower pedals. The sun would be shining and the birds would be chirping. We’d be wearing our capris and peddle-pushers. We would take off our shoes and soak our footies in the warm water while we nibbled on a modest buffet of brunch items. I thought it would bring back memories of when my sisters and I were young. In the summers our Grandma Gen’s would fill tubs with water and we’d all sit around in her yard and dangle our feet in the tubs. It is one of my fondest childhood memories.
Once our feet had soaked we would give ourselves PEDICURES and paint our toenails with our choice of nail polish, all the while chit-chatting about this and that. Afterwards, since our feet would be so pretty we would need some way to show them off, so I planned a CRAFT of decorating flip-flops. Our local Hobby Lobby store had everything I needed from the glue to the flip-flops and all the cutsie adornments to decorate them.
Well, you know how plans go sometimes – right out the window! That Saturday morning we had cold drizzle, and I mean blue-lips, can’t-feel-my-fingers, it’s-raining-it’s-pouring-the-old-man-is-snoring, COLD drizzle. Ugh. So we had to move our little soirée indoors to my cramped man-cave.
I phoned last-minute and begged everyone to bring a foot tub. I had also asked in the invitations for everyone to bring their own pedicure kits, and a few bottles of nail polish to share.
We didn’t let the inclement weather, or all the other little mishaps dampen our spirits. My guests seemed to have a blast and thankfully found humor in my severe lack of hostess skills that day.
Karen was my first guest to arrive and helped me put together the mimosas. While she poured orange juice I finished assembling the breakfast pizzas and that’s when the smoke alarm went off. Oh dear, someone – I’m not mentioning any names, but her initials are Lindee (sorry Sis) – placed a stack of paper plates out-of-the-way and over on the stove… on a lit burner that she didn’t realize was lit (whoops)! Thanks to Karen’s keen sniffer and quick reflexes, she grabbed and tossed the stack in the sink and ran water to put the flames out. Woo hoo… disaster averted! It all just added to our zany fun that day.
I don’t know whether the weather put me off or what, but I just didn’t have my feet under me with this get-together. Have you ever had a party like that? I felt scattered and rushed, and just helter-skelter, all over the place with my mood and my time management – just everything. In spite of that though we spent a sweet morning together listening to silly music, eating, being crafty and otherwise enjoying each other’s company. I ended up with enough stuff for everyone to make two pairs of flip-flops each, and I had gathered enough decorations and idea sheets to give us all plenty of inspiration.
BREAKFAST PIZZA
1 tube Pillsbury Pizza dough (refrigerated) (or you could use a Boboli ready-made crust)
2 Ripe Avacados, mashed (or a ready-made spicy guacamole)
6 strips of crispy fried bacon, crumbled
Grape tomatoes sliced in half
Handful of Arugula (or spinach) leaves
Dash of Tabasco
Pop the dough out of the tube and press out onto a large greased pizza pan. Bake until just turning golden, or use a Boboli crust. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Mix a few drops of Tabasco in with the mashed avocados and spread onto pizza crust. Sprinkle with crumbled bacon, arugula leaves, and grape tomato halves. Cut into wedges and serve. I tripled this recipe because of our number of guests and we had left-overs.
PEACH COBBLER
2 (1-lb) bags frozen peaches
1 tsp. lemon juice
½ cup sugar
2 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 tsp. Mace (or nutmeg)
1 Tbsp Vanilla
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 stick of butter, melted
Cinnamon and sugar
Toss 1 bag of peaches with next 5 ingredients and then layer in bottom of a buttered casserole dish. If you want to be fancy you can split it among ramekins (one for each guest).
Place sugar, flour, and milk in a bowl and whisk until blended. Whisk in the melted butter. Pour the batter over the peaches. Sprinkle with Cinnamon and sugar. Bake for 1 hour, or until the peaches are bubbling and the crust is golden. Check a little earlier if doing ramekins.
PEACHY MIMOSAS
½ gallon organic orange juice with pulp
2 small cans of peach nectar
1 small bottle of champagne (or sparkling cider, or ginger ale)
Mix all together in a large pitcher and pour into wine or champagne flutes. Decorate with orange slices dropped into the glass and a sprig of mint on top.
Flip-Flops Craft
For this craft you need at least one pair of flip-flops per guest. Hobby Lobby had a whole section dedicated to this craft. I picked up all the supplies there. At home I had material scraps that could be torn into strips and tied onto the straps of the flip-flops. I also had double-sided tape to adhere bead strips and fur strips and other decorations to the top of the sandals. If you can’t find craft flip-flops, just have each of your guests bring a pair from home to bling out.
Other Craft Ideas from Parties Past (pictured below):
Broken dish mosaic picture frames. Mosaic pieces can be glued to picture frames or clay pots and finished with grout to make a very nice looking product. Look at yard sales and second-hand stores for pretty dishes that are inexpensive; or use one of the dishes from your own cupboard. If you have a child who has gotten engaged, this would make a neat “break the dish” (Jewish engagement custom) activity for a mother to do with the fiancé’s mother, and would make a neat wedding gift for the couple to place their wedding photo in. Wrap the dishes in several sheets of newspaper and whack them several times with a hammer until there are just quarter-sized pieces. Use a fast drying mosaic glue (available at hobby stores) to adhere the pieces to the picture frame or clay pot. Keep the pieces fairly close together. Let the glue dry.
Follow package directions and mix up a batch of grout. Purchase any color sanded grout powder (available from Home Depot) that will compliment your china. Smooth it in between the tiles being sure to fill all the gaps and air spaces. Let it dry for as long as is recommended on the package, and then use a damp sponge to gently wipe the grout off the tiles. Keep rinsing the sponge and squeezing the water out of it in between wipes.
Once all the tiles are clean, let the project sit and dry for a day or two.
Paint Clay pots with acrylic paint. My family and I have done this at Christmas time and then planted narcissus bulbs in the pots after they were decorated. We’ve also done them for Mother’s day with summertime themes. Dani did hers with sunflowers. I did mine with dragonflies and other bugs. Gracee painted hers with stripes, and our other guests did designs that unfortunately escape my memory. Buy whatever size terra-cotta pots suit your fancy and some containers of water-based acrylic paint. You’ll also need an assortment of different sized and shaped paintbrushes. Remember to get the little plates that go underneath the pots and paint them too.
Paint and decorate birdhouses. A few years back I found some little wooden birdhouses at the craft store. I drug them out on Mother’s Day and we painted and decorated them. I glued rocks and sticks to mine after painting the little roof. My mom and daughters just painted theirs with pretty designs.
Rock Bugs: Hunt for rocks that are all different shapes and sizes. Glue small round ones together to make caterpillars or ants. Use small round ones and paint to look like ladybugs, bees, spiders, or beetles. Use long skinny ones and paint them to look like grasshoppers or hornets, or lizards. Use your imagination and have fun. These look especially cute when placed in the soil of a potted plant or scattered around on a window ledge with potted plants.
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Craft Party 2011
My first year in Texas I decided to celebrate mother’s day with all my girlfriends and their daughters/grand-daughters. They all came over for a craft party. I served food and had music playing, of course. JoAnn’s Fabrics and Crafts had little wooden birdhouses on sale for $1 each so I picked up about $30 worth. I also picked up some cheap wind chimes to attach to the bottoms of the birdhouses, and hardware to put some heavy string through to hang them on our porches. I asked my friends to bring paints, brushes, glue guns, and whatever other things they might want to use to decorate a bird house with. They all did and we had hours of fun with each other.
COWBOY CAVIAR (and tortilla chips)
Ingredients
1 can Black Eyed Peas, drained
1 can White Shoe peg Corn, drained
4 ripe tomatoes, diced
2 ripe Avocados. Diced
2 fresh Jalapeños, seeded and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
¼ cup Olive Oil
¼ cup Red Wine Vinegar
1 tsp. Cumin
¾ tsp each Salt & Pepper
¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper
Family Size Package of Tortilla Chips, Scoops
Directions
Mix all ingredients, except for chips, in a bowl. Toss well to distribute flavors. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator until party time. Serve with tortilla chips, like you would salsa and chips or guacamole and chips.
EGG SALAD SANDWICHES
Ingredients
1 dozen hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
1 small white onion minced
¼ cup sweet pickle relish
½ cup Mayo
1 Tablespoon Spicy Brown Mustard
Dash Cayenne powder
¼ tsp Salt & Pepper
5 leaves of Romaine Lettuce, shredded
2 Loaves of White Bread from the Bakery, sliced thin, crusts removed
Directions
Mix first 7 ingredients in a bowl, cover and chill overnight. The day of the party, lay out the bottom slices of white bread on a flat surface and spread egg salad over them in a thin layer. Layer several shreds of lettuce over, and then cover with the other slices of white bread. Cut each in half from corner to corner and then in quarters from the other corners. Arrange on a platter, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until party time.
SOUTH TEXAS SHRIMP COCKTAILS
Ingredients
2 lb frozen cooked shrimp, tail off, thawed, rinsed and patted dry
3 Large Ripe Avocados, cut into small chunks
6 Large Jalapeños, stems removed, chopped with seeds
1 Small White Onion, chopped
Half a bunch of Cilantro torn apart and chopped
2 12-oz bottles Louisiana brand Seafood Sauce, Spicy
3 Lemons cut into wedges
Clear plastic tumblers
Directions
In a large bowl combine shrimp, avocado, jalapenos, onion, cilantro, and sauce. Toss to combine. Spoon into clear plastic tumblers, top with a lemon wedge and sprig of parsley if desired, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
HOMEMADE LEMONADE
Ingredients
2 gallons drinking water, reserve 3 cups
10 Lemons, sliced
1 can frozen concentrate lemonade
4 cups sugar
2 gallon container with lid
Directions
Place 2 gallons of fresh cold drinking water in a 2 gallon glass container, reserving 3 cups to be used in a moment. Add lemons and frozen concentrate. Stir well. Place the 3 cups of reserved water in a bowl and microwave on high for 3 minutes until boiling. Add the 4 cups of sugar to the boiling water and stir until dissolved. Allow to cool, and then add to the lemonade. Stir well, chill until ready to serve.
Variation: Add a variety of chopped up chilled fruits (e.g. thin watermelon wedges with rind on, strawberries halved, green melon chunks, raspberries, blueberries, red grapes, orange slices, lime slices, and maraschino cherries) to the lemonade just before serving, or place fruits in large beverage glasses and fill each with lemonade. Serve with a straw.
RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE DELIGHT
Graham Cracker Crust:
1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
In a small bowl, combine the crumbs and sugar; add butter and blend well. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. pie plate. Bake at 375 degrees *F for 8-10 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before filling.
Filling
1 pkg of cream cheese, warmed to room temp
1 small container of marshmallow cream
1 tsp lemon juice
1 small container cool whip
1 package fresh or frozen raspberries
Mint leaves and lemon slices for garnish
Directions
Mix cream cheese, marshmallow cream, lemon juice, and cool whip in a bowl. Carefully fold in half the raspberries. Spread over cooled graham cracker crust. Place the other half of the raspberries on top and garnish with mint leaves and lemon slices. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
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And here’s a menu I put together for a Baby Shower garden party for my daughter:
“And when these days were completed, the king made a feast…for all the people…great to small, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace.”
“Now it happened as [Jesus] went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.” Luke 10:38 …And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Luke 10: 39-42)
I recently put together a fairly elaborate luncheon for a group of ladies. I’d put a lot of thought and effort into it, wanting it to be sort-of-like a seventh inning stretch for them — a sort of coach’s halftime speech that would give them a sense of accomplishment for their work so far, refresh them, and then inoculate them with the energy and enthusiasm to crank out the last ounces of their strength and finish the game.
As they nibbled on their morsels, I remarked to them that this was going to probably be my finest hour, the penacle of parties, and it was going to all be downhill from here. One of the ladies piped up saying that I didn’t really need to go to so much fuss and bother, that she was just as tickled with a loaf of bread and simple assortment of lunch meats. As long as she didn’t have to cook it, or clean up from it, she was totally happy. The other guests agreed.
That’s when the scripture about “Martha, Martha” and Jesus popped into my head. And I have to also say, I love how the scriptures are so honest with Martha’s wording of her question to Jesus, “Do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?” By her words I’m almost certain Martha was probably a firstborn. I’d even venture a guess that she and her siblings may have lost their parents at a young age and Martha assumed the role of mother to her brother and sister. I only wonder this because the three of them are always together, but there is never any mention of parents or spouses. Mary fits the model of a second born – an opposite of the firstborn. The oldest always feels like they have more responsibilities than the other kids, and that younger siblings get away with slacking off much more than they do.
Martha had obviously been brought up with manners and knew how to entertain guests. I bet she kept her house spotless clean, dishes done, beds made with fresh linens, and smelling great with scented candles and such. When Jesus stayed I’m sure she tried hard to make sure everything was perfect for Him. Maybe she laid a mint on His pillow and bottle of water on his nightstand. Perhaps she washed his clothes for Him. And what a sweet surprise it would have been to have them pressed and hanging in the bathroom for Him when He got up to shower in the morning. With a name like Martha you have to think she probably did crafts, gardened, was an amazing decorator, and most assuredly a fantastic cook too! Or maybe it is Martha Stewart I’m thinking of? Ha!
Scripture says the Mary/Martha/Lazarus family lived in Bethany. Luke says Jesus came to their village and that’s where He met Martha. I often wonder what Martha was doing when Jesus came through? Was she planting flowers in front of her home, or sweeping off the sidewalks when Jesus passed by? Was she at the market or on her way home and they met in the street? I wish I knew how their paths had crossed? What had He said to her that prompted her to invite Him to her house? And what did she make for supper? Even more intriguing…what did Jesus like to eat?
Like Martha I am a firstborn, with a lot of things on my mind. Always a million plans on my heart. I admire Martha wanting to make her guest comfortable and happy. If she is anything like me she probably spent all week deciding on what to make for supper after extending that invitation, and then shopped all over town for the freshest and finest ingredients. I wonder if she scrubbed and dusted and made sure everything was perfect, like I certainly would have. From the cleaning of the bathrooms to the chopping of vegetables, I imagine she stayed busy. And I’m pretty sure Jesus not only cared, but that He noticed, and was grateful.
In fact the more I look at it from my recent experience with the ladies, the more the tone of His response seems to sweetly suggest that she didn’t need to go to so much trouble and fuss for Him; that she had made way too much food and preparations; and that a simple dinner would have done fine. I think Jesus appreciated Martha’s efforts greatly, but what I see that He desired rather than an extravagant meal was the pleasure of her company, which is where Mary comes in.
Jesus often broke the social molds of the age and this is one more example. Mary was allowed to sit at Jesus’ feet and be taught. That was a luxury reserved for the men in those days, but Jesus let Mary be seated in the congregation around Him instead of sending her away to do women’s work. In fact, Jesus wanted Martha to put down the spatula and oven mitt and partake as well.
Jesus loved Martha (John 11:5) and her sister, and their love for Him was mutual, but I see each was different in return. John 11:2 and 12:3 says it was this Mary who anointed Jesus with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair (Matt.26:7). That makes me think Mary (as the Greeks would say) “eros” loved Jesus – with a deep, familial, affectionate love. Martha “philos” loved Jesus, with a brotherly, giving, serving love. And Jesus “agape” loved Mary and Martha, with unconditional, sacrificial love.
God had gifted Martha to serve, and her gift is important. If she hadn’t been there, Jesus would have maybe starved. He’d have had to probably sleep on the cold hard floor or worse, on the street. As special as Martha’s gift was, though, it’s only part of the total package of hospitality. I believe John 12:2-3 lists the total package: Martha served, Lazarus sat, and Mary anointed. As a guest in their home Jesus was provided for, kept company, and well-regarded.
Those two girls, whether they realized it or not, were a pair. Together these two women demonstrate what I think are the two sides of hospitality, giving and receiving (and Lazarus was there to talk sports, right?).
I don’t think it is a coincidence that Luke 10 begins with Jesus sending out His disciples two-by-two and ends with Mary and Martha?
“After these things the Lord appointed seventy other [disciples] also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves. Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road. But whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’” (Luke 10: 1-9)
I feel like the kingdom of God has come near me today. As much as I love to serve, I have to remember that it isn’t fair to impose my ways on anyone (we are all gifted differently), or expect someone is being lazy who doesn’t share my vision. I need to put away distractions sometimes and just sit at Jesus’ feet, probably a lot more often than I actually do.
And when I do serve, I’m going to try to KEEP IT SIMPLER so that I can receive from the Lord what He wishes to teach me, rather than trying so hard to impress my guests.
It is so true what Jesus says in Matthew 13:17, “For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.” I sooooo wish I could see how very different Martha’s first supper for Jesus was from that last one with Him after her brother came back to life?
“There they made Him a supper; and Martha served…” John 12:2
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
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Pinterest, and then made it a reality when I found these flatbreads at my local HEB > > >
You can use real terra cotta pots for the trifles, which come in larger-than-cupcake sizes. And since the cake is not being baked in the terra cotta you won’t have to worry about dyes or other toxic elements leaching into your batter in the oven. I soaked my pots in the sink to get the price stickers off, then I put my pots in the dishwasher and ran them through a full sterilizing wash cycle. When they were done I put them in the oven on warm (170*F) to dry them out completely before using.
Everything I researched said DO NOT SEEK A CHIROPRACTOR FOR YOUR NECK (cervical spine) unless your chiropractor is highly skilled in neck treatment. If after fully examining you with x-rays he suggests light traction and physical therapy exercises, ice and heat therapy, massage and trigger point therapy, and even laser treatments (like are used for neuropathy), rather than mentioning an “adjustment,” you’ve got a good Chiropractor. My GP said the back is okay to manipulate, but the neck (cervical vertebrae) should never be “adjusted.”
gave me a tennis ball to use to roll on my back against a wall and massage the areas that hurt, and work on the trigger points. It worked wonders!!! And icing afterwards helped tons.
I set up a CD player outside that had *lullaby music playing softly and continuously in the background during the party. (*I used the 
And for this year’s garden party I planned a “kiddie pool pedicure party” where all my guests would sit in lawn chairs in a circle outside around our kiddie pool filled with hot sudsy water and perfumed bath salts and floating flower pedals. The sun would be shining and the birds would be chirping. We’d be wearing our capris and peddle-pushers. We would take off our shoes and soak our footies in the warm water while we nibbled on a modest buffet of brunch items. I thought it would bring back memories of when my sisters and I were young. In the summers our Grandma Gen’s would fill tubs with water and we’d all sit around in her yard and dangle our feet in the tubs. It is one of my fondest childhood memories.
feet would be so pretty we would need some way to show them off, so I planned a CRAFT of decorating flip-flops. Our local Hobby Lobby store had everything I needed from the glue to the flip-flops and all the cutsie adornments to decorate them.
I phoned last-minute and begged everyone to bring a foot tub. I had also asked in the invitations for everyone to bring their own pedicure kits, and a few bottles of nail polish to share.
EGG SALAD SANDWICHES
smelling great with scented candles and such. When Jesus stayed I’m sure she tried hard to make sure everything was perfect for Him. Maybe she laid a mint on His pillow and bottle of water on his nightstand. Perhaps she washed his clothes for Him. And what a sweet surprise it would have been to have them pressed and hanging in the bathroom for Him when He got up to shower in the morning. With a name like Martha you have to think she probably did crafts, gardened, was an amazing decorator, and most assuredly a fantastic cook too! Or maybe it is Martha Stewart I’m thinking of? Ha!
anything like me she probably spent all week deciding on what to make for supper after extending that invitation, and then shopped all over town for the freshest and finest ingredients. I wonder if she scrubbed and dusted and made sure everything was perfect, like I certainly would have. From the cleaning of the bathrooms to the chopping of vegetables, I imagine she stayed busy. And I’m pretty sure Jesus not only 
mrshlovesjesus 
