~~FEMININE MATTERS~~

DOG BISCUITS AND PINK ICED-CAKES

YUMMY, YUMMY, YUMMY!  Scrumpcious cakes.  These lovely squares of delectable treats were made by a friend of mine.  Chris is a handy lady.  She can whip up professional cakes, stitch together an entire bridal ensemble, decorate the church, serve the wedding guests, and then help renovate a home for them.  All in one month if the renovation is left till after the honeymoon.  She can make custom drapes and reupholster a sofa.  I'm here to tell you Chis is an amazing Christian lady.  Moss does not grow beneath her feet.

I admire her.  I find her one of the most interesting, humble people I've ever met.  She is an avid supporter of the public library, a lover of dogs, plants and crafts.  She volunteers her time at the International Friendship Group every Tuesday morning.  There she has a prepared craft for bilingual ladies to put together.

She is always willing to lend a hand to anyone in need.  She helps distribute food on Angel Food day and takes an enormous amount of pleasure in serving God with all the talents and gifts He has graciously bestowed upon her.  She would be the first to tell you that she doesn't do much.  She does not blow her own horn and is embarassed by others who blow it for her.  But she is a jewel.  A precious jewel.

It's hard to imagine a 5-foot feminine lady who can tile a floor, wire a home, plumb a bathroom and paint walls.  But Chris can.  Gosh, I'm blessed to know her.  And you would be, too.  Below is a picture I took of her at a doggie shower we gave her.  She'd just gotten a baby cocker spaniel.  So since she doesn't have any grandchildren and she is always first to help out in every shower thrown for others, we felt she deserved a shower of her own.

Talk about fun.

If you came to this blog looking for food, all I can offer today is a piece of cake and some doggie biscuits--corn made.  Wheat's not good for dogs.  Did you know that?

Want to show how much you appreciate someone?  Dream up a reason to throw a surprise shower.  Did you have a friend who just remodeled a kitchen, a bathroom?  Have a friend who just planted her first flower garden, dug her first fish pond?  Lands alive!  Have a party!

There's no greater blessing in the world than blessing another.  There's no greater joy than seeing the joy on another's face and knowing you had a tiny part in placing it there.  There's no greater gift, no better food for the soul, than laughter in the company of friends.  You can feed on it for years to come.  selahV

FEMINITY~~ A THOUGHT TO RECKON WITH

~~feminity~~

How gentle is the thought.

When I think of feminity~~

I think cozy, soft and spellbinding.  I think childbirth, thimbles, and eyelet lace.  I think cotton petticoats and safety pins~~ garden paths and patchwork quilts.  I think diaries under lock and key and plucking daisy petals.  I think novels marked with recipes, clipped from magazines.  Tablecloths dressed in china cups filled with rosehips tea.

When I smell feminity~~

I smell grama's gingham aprons~~ perfumed with blackberry jam.  I smell homemade bread and applebutter~~ cinnamon toast and country ham.  Peppermint, sage and thyme.  I smell wafts of lavender and lilacs~~ soft scents of honeysuckle.  Freshly ironed shirts, lemon wax and ocean air~~ dark rich soil, Ivory soap and lotion made by Jergen's.

When I taste feminity~~

I taste watermelon, sweet peach tea and buttered yellow corn.  Caramel, chocolate and coconut~~ all battle for my tongue.  I taste coffee ice cream and seafoam candy-drops.  I taste chicken soup, spaghetti sauce, beef stew~~ and New England chowder.   

When I see feminity~~

I see hollyhocks and cosmos, swaying in the breeze~~ bright bouquets and big red hats,  rolling pins and mason jars. 

I see clotheslines filled with floral sheets, and long hair glistening in the sun.  I see three blue eggs cradled in a robin's nest...as a monarch flutters by.  I see buttercups beneath the chin of a baby dressed in pink.

I see outstretched fingers lightly strumming an angel's harp in heaven.

When I feel feminity~~

I feel cotton balls, and puppies' fur and freshly starched white shirts.  I feel silk and satin and soft rose petals. Greasy pans and stubborn lids~~ taut knotted shoulder blades. I feel fevered brows and salty tears and sticky grubby hands.  I feel elbows, feet and bony knees tumbling in my womb~~ I feel hope and comfort, joy and peace and sense the love of God.  selahV