Abortion Politics 2008

Here's an article from First Things with some serious thoughts about voting IF Giuliani gets the Republican nomination.....http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=6085

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree....

I put up our Christmas tree last night. It looks nice. This is the 2nd year I have used the artificial one. In years past the boys were always working the Boy Scout Christmas tree sale but usually we couldn't afford to buy one there, so we would always wait until the trees came onto the lot at Mazer's, 84 Lumber or one of the Home Goods stores.......I would gather up James and Gray and we would ride down and find the two biggest ones we could locate on the lot. We used to always get a 10-12 foot tree "in the good ole days :-)". But alas, I am very happy with the 6 foot artificial tree which I put upon the top of the coffee table......... so it looks like it's about 10 feet tall!!!! ......sweet!

Parmesan Shortbread

I haven't tried this, but I intend to. Perhaps it would be like cheese straws..... 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp 1/2 t salt 1/4 t ground black pepper pinch of cayene pepper 8 ounces grated parmesan cheese 1 cup all purpose flour Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter, salt, black and cayenne pepper at low speed until blended. Add cheese and flour alternately and mix at low speed until smooth. Shape dought into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill 30 minutes. On lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-1/8 inch thickness and cut into desired shapes. Bake on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake until light golden, about 13-15 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes then transfer to racks to cool completely. ....doesn't that sound good.......I won't get to attend Sarah's cookie swap this year, but if I did, I'd take this! I'll let you know how it turns out when I try it!

Fresh Flowers

There are some occasions when fresh flowers simply make the difference in how a special celebration looks and feels.....Flowers bring a sense of cheerfulness and classical beauty! This is a combination of white "innocence" roses and Christmas greenery. I made the arrangement and it was the centerpiece at mama's birthday party....I have always been a little nervous about flower arranging, but with the help of a few books on the topic, trial and error, and a little obsessive compulsiveness about whether this bloom is in the right place or not, I think I have had some stunning results (if I do say so myself!).

.....Fred's stand on the issues

The choice is clear if we look at the candidate's stand on the issues.... http://www.ontheissues.org/senate/Fred_Thompson.htm

80th Birthday

My mother (Rose Mary Semon Nettles) was born born Dec 3, 1927. We celebrated her 80th birthday this weekend with a nice party in Selma, Alabama. All her children and grandchildren were present except our son, John and Tiffany's son Braxton. ....that means Cindy/Gilbert, Mary Jane/Clay, Rose Ellen/Michael and Johnny/Tiffany and 20 grandchildren were in attendance. AND in addition, Mama's siblings, Uncle Manny and Aunt Dessie made it and friends from UMW, PineBelt, the surrounding communities AND some relatives drove from neighboring states to attend! It was a happy occasion for all and we're planning to do it again in 20 years!

A Collect for Sunday

O God, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of you Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Advent of our God our prayers must now employ. And we must meet God on the Road with hymns of Holy joy. The everlasting Child incarnate deigns to be. Selects a servant's life to live, God's people to set free. Before the dawning day let sin's dark deeds be gone, and all our old life put away, our new life to begun. All glory to the Christ who comes to set us free, with God and Spirit ever One throughout eternity Words: Charles Coffin (18thC), tr. John Chandler (19thC)