I Believe

"Each of us is an Inn Keeper who decides if there is room enough for JESUS."~ Neal A. Maxwell



     Last Tuesday was our annual Christmas luncheon for Quilt Guild.  The theme this year was "BEE-lieve".  Our challenge was to make a small quilt, less than 100 inches in circumference, that either had a bee on it or showed something that we personally believe in.  The lunch was great and we had one of our members, Sam, do a trunk show for us that was outstanding.

     This past year I made a new friend, Mary Louise, and she shared with me some chocolate muffins.  I just have to say they are delicious.  So delicious there are no words to describe how delicious.  And she was so nice to share the recipe with me.

Chocolate Banana Muffins

Makes 18 muffins

1 ½ cups mashed bananas (3 medium to large)

1/3 cup oil, coconut or olive

1 egg or 2 Tbsp. flax

1 cup sugar or ½ cup honey

1 ½ cups flour

¼ cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. baking powder

1 cup mini chocolate chips

Variations: add berries, nuts, and seeds

Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

     I finished reading this book not too long ago.  It actually has 3 Christmas stories by three amazing authors!

Giving Thanks Everyday

"Gratitude is said to be the memory of the heart."~ Joseph F. Smith


     We took a little trip up north to Washington state to visit my sister for Thanksgiving and we had a great time as usual.  I made some bowl cozies and gave them to my sister as a hostess gift.  I made four of them and I hope she will use them.  They come in very handy when you are heating up soup or oatmeal in the microwave. You can also use them when you are eating a bowl of ice cream so your fingers don't get too cold.

     My sister and her husband fed us an amazing meal on Thanksgiving.  She made a fruit salad that she called Harvey's Salad.  But for simplicity's sake I'll call it.......

Lemon Pudding Fruit Salad

1 (21 oz.) can pineapple tidbits with juice

1 (11 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained

1 (3 ½ oz.) package instant lemon pudding

1 (8 oz.) container cool whip, thawed

2 cups mini marshmallows

Put pineapple in a large bowl.  Pour pudding mix over and stir until mixed.  Let sit for 5 minutes until thickened. Drain oranges and mix in gently.  Add marshmallows and Cool Whip and gently fold in. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

You can also add in one or more of these optional ingredients:

1 banana, sliced

½ cup shredded coconut

1 (10 oz.) bottle maraschino cherries, drained

1 (16 oz.) can fruit cocktail, drained

1 apple, diced

Fresh grapes

½ cup chopped pecans

     My sister threw in some pomegranate seeds and it added a burst of fruit flavor and a little crunch!  Just remember if you're adding bananas to stir them in right before serving.

     It rained everyday we were in Washington but that didn't stop us from having a good time.  I have pictures of us at a waterfall, at a beach collecting sea shells and kayaking, chantrelle mushrooms that were found in the forest and sautéed and added to the stuffing.  On the way home we took a ferry boat ride and amazingly our car was the very last one to board the boat. We were happy that we didn't have to wait an hour for the next ferry.

  As always I went to a couple of quilt shops during our trip. 

   I was also able to finish reading two books during our little vacation.  This book was not one of them.  This is more of a short story by Louisa May Alcott.  It was a cute little tale.