Dear Hope Chest friends,
Julie Druck has kindly given me permission to forward this helpful newsletter along to you. She always has such great holiday activity ideas! You can subscribe to her newsletter by sending any e-mail to: [email protected].
Because of being late with October's issue, I feel as if this one is right on top of the heels of the last issue! Oh, well! We're eagerly anticipating our annual Thanksgiving trip to the cabin. Since I've got Thanksgiving on my mind, you'll find a pile of ideas for that holiday below. In the meantime, I hope that you're remembering to "count your blessings, name them one by one, count your many blessings, see what God has done"! May you and your's have a blessed holiday and a joyful month! Julie
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THANKSGIVING FUN
* A week or two before Thanksgiving last year, I used the following Scriptures in our devotional time before schooling. I combined some of the shorter passages, and we spent some time talking about them each morning:
Psalm 100, Psalm 50:10-15, Ephesians 5:20, Psalm 95:1-7, Philippians 4:6, Colossians 4:2, Psalm 105:1, Psalm 107:1, Psalm 75:1, Colossians 3:15
* The boys and I spent a cozy, rainy afternoon last fall making turkey cookies for their friends and AWANA leaders. Here's how: double one of your favorite cookie recipes and bake large cookies using 1/4 C. of the batter for each cookie. You'll have to lengthen your baking time a bit. When the cookies are cool, cover them individually with plastic wrap. Then cut out tail feathers and a turkey face from construction paper. Glue the face on the front of the cookie and 5 feathers across the back. You can write a message on the feathers (one word per feather) if you wish, such as "I am thankful for you!" Fun and delicious! (This idea was adapted from the Nov. 2005 issue of "Family Fun.")
* Here's another fun idea with cookies from my friend, Lois: Pilgrim Hat Cookies. Mix up a batch of gingerbread with your favorite recipe or use boxed gingerbread (the cookie recipe is usually on the side of the box). Roll out the dough and cut with round cookie cutters. Bake and let cool. Unwrap peanut butter cups and place one inverted in the center of each cookie. Using store-bought frosting or your own, pipe a ring around the base of the peanut butter cup, "gluing" it onto the cookie. The icing forms the band of the hat. Then pipe a square buckle from that line, upward onto the peanut butter cup to form the buckle. Ta-da – a cute (and delicious) pilgrim hat! These were a great hit with the kids of our church at our annual Thanksgiving dinner. J (Info on Lois's newsletter: The purpose of the Heart to Heart Newsletter is to encourage women and build biblical values into daily living through practical creative ideas for the Christian family regarding marriage, children, homemaking, and much more. You may receive this free bimonthly newsletter by sending your name, city, state, e-mail address, and name of your referral person to Lois at [email protected]. New subscribers will receive a "Start-Up Kit." )
* Eli came up with a fun little craft project – clothespin turkeys. He glued a red, an orange and a yellow popsicle stick to the back of a non-spring clothespin, fanning them out like a tail. He then used marker to color the pin black except for the head. He left the head tan and colored two eyes on it. He made a whole row of them to prop along the windowsill.
* For a fun addition to your Thanksgiving table, make silly placecards. For each family members, cut out a small picture of their head from a photograph. Glue it onto a piece of cardstock that's been folded in half so it can prop up. Hunt through magazines until you find a silly body to cut out and glue underneath their head. Add their name and wait for the laughter! On the boys' cards last year, I pasted the bodies of big, strong muscular men! For Marty and mine, I glued some animal bodies that I found. J (Save them to put in your journal.)
* For a simple craft project make a "thankful" chain. Cut 12 long strips of construction paper to form a chain. Help your child write a letter from THANKSGIVING on each of the 12 strips using a marker. Now have them go back and write something they're thankful for on each strip that begins with that letter. For example, on the "T" strip, help them write "trains" or whatever they come up with to be thankful. After they've written on the strips, form the "T" strip into a loop and staple. For the rest of the strips, thread each one through the previous loop and staple. Hang as a Thanksgiving decoration! This idea can be used with your children or with a Sunday school class (if you have another adult to help you)!
* My friend, Candy, mentioned that you could make a mini journal by recording one thing that you are thankful for in each space of November's calendar page. This would be wonderful to do all year round!
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UNIQUE PLACES – Historic Odessa, Delaware
A couple of years ago my mom gave me a really neat Christmas gift – we took a one-day bus trip to "Christmas in Odessa." Odessa, Delaware, was a prosperous river town in the 1800's. Today the beautiful homes and businesses of that town are owned by families who continue to keep them decorated in the style of the 1800's. A forty-two year-old tradition, "Christmas in Odessa' is a self-guided walking tour where the owners open up their homes which have been richly and traditionally decorated for a Victorian Christmas. It's like stepping back in time as you stroll the brick-lined streets and visit the quaint parlors, kitchens and dining rooms of these lovely homes. Each owner knows the rich history of their home and shares all kinds of wonderful tidbits about the customs and antiques of the past.
Besides visiting many private homes, we also visited Old St. Paul's Church for punch and cookies, as well as the quaint little library for a book sale. In the fire hall, the auxiliary was selling soup, sandwiches, pieces of pie and cake, and hot chocolate all day. They also sold crafts and fresh cut greenery of all kinds at the hall. Besides that, we enjoyed the fife and drum corps that marched through town. We also could have taken a horse-drawn carriage ride down Main Street.
Though we chose to take a bus to Odessa (through York City Recreation & Parks), you can drive yourself and park in town. The ride from York took two hours, but it was well worth it!! "Christmas in Odessa" will be held this year on Saturday, December 2, 2006, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Going through the houses by candlelight is especially wonderful! The price of tickets is $15.00 which includes all the homes, the concerts at Old St. Paul's Church, the carriage rides, and some other events. For more information, check out www.christmasinodessa.com.
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ON THE BOOKSHELF
* "Turk and Runt" by Lisa Wheeler has become an annual read for our family at Thanksgiving. The antics of a turkey family trying to escape becoming Thanksgiving dinner will have you laughing aloud!
*"P is for Pilgrim – A Thanksgiving Alphabet" by Carol Crane is a great way to teach your children the history of Thanksgiving. The bright pictures add much to this story-within-a-story. Each page contains a different letter of the alphabet and a corresponding verse pertaining to Thanksgiving. Also on each page is a more in-depth explanation of each verse. This makes it a great book to tailor to young children and/or older children. Look for the other wonderful books in the Sleeping Bear Press' Alphabet series.
* "Simply Handmade – 365 Easy Gifts & Decorations You Can Make" published by Meredith Press is a wealth of great ideas. I love this book for two reasons - #1) the items truly are easy to make and #2) the photographs are bright and detailed. Some of the ideas I jotted down:
- Pinecone Balls – Spray-paint styrofoam balls with brown paint and dry. Glue stem ends of pinecones to ball until covered. Arrange several balls in a basket for an autumn decoration.
- Snowman Ornament – Pour white liquid acrylic paint into a clear glass ornament. Add a snowman's face on the outside with paint pens.
- Sweetheart Candy Wreath – Wrap a small styrofoam wreath with lavendar gingham ribbon and hot glue candy hearts onto the wreath, overlapping as desired.
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FROM THE PANTRY – Pecan Pumpkin Pie
Pecan Pumpkin Pie is a yummy recipe that I got from my friend, Erin. She adapted it from the Oct./Nov. 2001 edition of "Taste of Home" magazine. I love this version of pumpkin pie because of its deliciously unique flavor. Enjoy!
Pecan Pumpkin Pie
1 – 29 oz. can of pumpkin
3/4 C. sugar
1 – 5 oz. can of evaporated milk
1 tabl. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 pkg. yellow cake mix (not butter mix)
3/4 C. butter, melted
1 1/2 C. chopped pecans
Line two 9" pie plates with waxed or parchment paper, making sure to press the paper into the shape of the plates. Coat the paper with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, sugar, milk, spices and salt. Beat in the eggs. Pout into prepared pans and sprinkle with dry cake mix. Drizzle with melted butter. Sprinkle with pecans; press down lightly. Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for two hours on wire racks. Carefully run a knife around the edge of pan to loosen. Invert pies onto serving plates; remove waxed paper. Chill.
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GOD'S GUIDANCE – Be Ready!
The Lord has been pressing eternity upon my heart much lately. Everywhere I turn I'm reminded how short this life really is. My mother was almost in a traffic accident the other day that could have been fatal. A former minister of ours was recently hit by a car and killed while going to his mailbox. The Amish school shooting in our neighboring county of Lancaster remains fresh in my mind.
I can't get away from it. It's as if the Lord is constantly saying to me, "Make the most of your time - be ready – be ready!" A recent sermon by our pastor was entitled "Are You Ready?" He spoke about the parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew – some of whom weren't ready when the bridegroom came for the wedding. Pastor Joe focused our attention on checking our hearts to make sure that we're ready for our Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus. Though I'm no prophet - and no man but the Father knows when He will send Jesus again - it seems as if the time grows short.
There are two aspects of being ready that I've been pondering. The first one deals with being ready in regard to salvation. The Word of God tells us that Jesus Christ is coming again to this earth and will judge the hearts of all men. Those of us who have come to a saving knowledge of and trust in Jesus Christ will be ready. For those who have chosen to find salvation in themselves, there will be death in Hell - separated from God forever.
The other aspect of being ready deals with the work of the Kingdom. Though our salvation isn't based on the work that we do for the Lord, but on His grace alone, there are things that God has called us to. Those are the things that God is pressing on my heart. Am I about my Father's business? Am I making the most of the time that I have on earth? Am I spending my time, money and talents on those things that are of eternal value? Am I storing my treasures, not in my attic, but in Heaven?
These questions can cause us to be overwhelmed as we contemplate the answers. But they don't have to overwhelm us. I'm learning that living for eternity doesn't mean we have to go out and do something absolutely monumental for the Lord. Living for eternity takes place in the little choices that we're constantly making throughout the day. Eternity is found in explaining a biblical principle to your four-year-old. It's found in a smile for an over-worked cashier. Eternity lingers in the air as you cook your husband's favorite meal that will bless his heart and fill his stomach. It's present in your fingers as they move the pen to jot a quick note of thanks or encouragement to a friend. Eternity is found in your persistence of phonics that you teach day-in-and-day-out so that one day your child might have the ability to read the Book of all books to themselves.
Eternal opportunities absolutely surround us! Does this encourage your heart to press on? It does mine! It spurs me on to collect as many crowns as I possibly can!! Oh, what joy fills my heart when I daydream of the moment in which I will take off every one of those crowns and lay them at my Lord's feet. That thought alone keeps me running to do His work while there is yet time.
Are YOU ready?
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