For Sunday, June, 26th, 2011

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

JUNE 26TH, 2011

If you can't see the bright side of life, polish the dull side

It's SUNDAY!

LOG CABIN DAY

Log Cabin Day brings you back to a quieter, simpler, more rugged era. A couple hundred years ago, life was far more rugged. Americans moving West, west at the time may have been Ohio, or Tennessee, found an untouched wilderness, filled with pristine forests. They built their homes out of logs. These log cabins were solid, long lasting, and served them well.

Life was rustic and simple. Heat was provided by an open fireplace, where they also cooked their meals. Need air conditioning in the summer? Just open the window, there wasn't any glass or screening. There was no electricity, no television, stereos or boom boxes blasting, or computers. And, plumbing? Just look back towards the woods to the outhouse. The path to it is well worn.

Today is a day to appreciate the history and significance of log cabins. Visit them at historical museums today, or sometime this summer.

Did you know: seven US Presidents were born in log cabins, including Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Jackson.

It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all

Laura Ingalls Wilder

NEW IN THE KITCHEN

National Chocolate Pudding Day

Did you know that in America, chocolate pudding is a chocolate flavored custard. In Britain, chocolate pudding is more of a dense cake, and the word pudding itself can be a generic term for dessert.

Old-fashioned Chocolate Pudding

2 cups milk, plus
2 tablespoons milk
3/4 cup sugar
4 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
3 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 ounces semisweet chocolate shavings

Sweetened Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon sugar

Pudding: Combine the heavy cream, vanilla, and sugar in a medium-size mixing bowl and, using an electric mixer, whip until soft peaks form. In a medium-size nonreactive saucepan, combine 2 cups of the milk and the sugar over medium-high heat.

Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve the sugar, then reduce the heat to medium. Add the chopped chocolate and whisk until it completely melts. Remove from the heat.

Combine the egg yolks, cornstarch, and the remaining 2 tablespoons milk in a small mixing bowl and whisk until smooth. Slowly add the chocolate mixture, whisking constantly, until it is all used. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add the vanilla and butter and stir until the butter melts.

Pour the mixture into a glass bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap down over the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool

Refrigerate for 4 hours. Remove the plastic wrap and beat with a wire whisk until smooth. To serve, spoon into dessert bowls and garnish with the whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

Sweetened Whipped Cream: With electric mixer, whip cream, vanilla and sugar till done.

PRAYER FOR OUR TROOPS

Please pray for God's protection of

our troops and HIS wisdom for their

commanders.

Lord, hold our troops in

your loving hands.

Protect them as they protect us.

Bless them and their families for the

selfless acts they perform for us

in our time of need. I ask this in the

name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

AND bless our Police Officers, Firefighters

and Paramedics and EMT's

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

AROUND HOME

Simplicity is making the journey of this life with just baggage enough.

Anonymous

Keeping it Simple

Its really sort of simple:

Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.

Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down. (keep this in mind if you are one of those grouches;)

Keep learning: Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain get idle. An idle mind is the devil's workshop. And the devil's name is Alzheimer's!

Enjoy the simple things.

Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. And if you have a friend who makes you laugh, spend lots and lots of time with HIM/HER.

The tears happen: Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. LIVE while you are alive.

Surround yourself with what you love: Whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.

Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

Author Unknown

Today is the day to rest and relax so take time out just to enjoy the simple things in life.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

COUNTING THE DAYS

Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.

Albert Einstein

89 DAYS UNTIL FALL

Keep looking ON THE BRIGHT SIDE of things.

A little smile, a word of cheer,
A bit of love from someone near…

Love,

ma