Recipes = Memories

I was going through my recipe box the other day and it was like going back in time. I have one recipe for Crumb Cake that I got in a home economics class back in High School. That was a long time ago. It was delicious and I haven't made it in years! It makes me think of baking with my best girl friend in her mom's kitchen with all those yellow appliances....yes it was the 70's!! There's another one for Beef Stew that I made when my kids were babies and starting to eat "real" food. I would actually put it in the blender so they could eat it. I have several Christmas cookie recipes that was from a visit to my girlfriends house in Hawaii. We were visiting with my 3 month old daughter and had a major cookie baking session. I still use those recipes and am reminded of it every time. Recipes that were given to me by someone and written in their own handwriting are especially meaningful. It conjures up that person in my mind and how much I care for them or special times we spent together baking or whatever. I think it's a wonderful gift and with that thought I plan to do that for my own kids using recipes that I know they remember and enjoyed. Handwritten family recipes will be one of my gifts to them this Christmas.

Hello Gorgeous!!

What a show the trees put on this time of year! The colors are incredible aren’t they? One of my favorite things to do with the leaves that fall is to press them in between the pages of the phone book to use in various fall decorations. If you have a table with a piece of glass on the top of it, place several colorful leaves in an artistic arrangement underneath the glass for a beautiful surprise. Use them as placecards by writing your guests name with a gold or silver paint pen, right on the leaf and place it on top of your guests plate. If you have a particularly beautiful leaf, use a solid color mat board in a picture frame behind it or even a gorgeous piece of fabric to compliment the colors in your leaf. Include an especially beautiful leaf inside the envelope with any correspondence that you send at this time of year. Of course you can tuck them into your fall wreaths or displays all around the house!
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