Peach and Strawberry/Rhubarb Pies

 

“Repentance opens the door to our new beginnings, fresh starts, and second chances. Our dear President Russell M. Nelson’s teachings have cleared up misconceptions about the divine gift of repentance, and I think we are finally beginning to grasp it. It is exciting to hear our youth describe what repentance means to them. I recently heard a young woman say, with a smile on her face, 'When I think of repentance, daily repentance, I feel incredible joy and hope. I feel the love and happiness of my Heavenly Father and my Saviour. I am not afraid to come to Heavenly Father in prayer and ask for His help with whatever I’m struggling with. I know They’re not trying to catch me doing something wrong. Their arms are open wide. This is repentance to me,' she said. This young woman understands that because of Jesus Christ, she can have new beginnings!” - Elder Patrick Kearon

November Door Banner

 

As a teenager, I took piano lessons Thursday nights. My teacher’s home was filled with the smells of dinner cooking. His wife would bring in a plate of hot food so he could eat without interrupting the lessons. I used to think how wonderful it would be to have someone do that. I don’t. But I do have a slow cooker.

 

Loaded Chicken/Potato Casserole

 

3 Idaho russets, cubed

1 pound chicken breasts, cubed

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar

3 scallions, thinly sliced

3/4 cup cream

 

Spray interior of slow cooker with cooking spray. Spread half the potatoes in bottom. Cover with half the chicken. Sprinkle half the seasoning, bacon, cheese and onion on top. Repeat with remaining potatoes, chicken, seasoning, bacon, cheese and onion. Pour cream over casserole. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours. Makes 3 or 4 servings.

Halloween Wall Hanging

 

Some weeks ago, I saw a pattern for a Halloween wall hanging called Cat-BOO-ccino. It was 24x30” with a cat, a bat, a teacup and saucer and a spider. I thought the idea was clever, but lacking in execution. The cat, bat and cup seemed out of proportion. I don’t drink cappuccino, but I feel the drink is all about the pattern in the foamy top – which doesn’t show in the quilt design. The spider and the cat’s eyes were round appliques (not my favorite). I did like the Dear Stella prints, some with tiny cat’s heads and others with a pattern reminiscent of Haunted Mansion wallpaper. So, I bought the fabric and designed my own 20x36” quilt with a moon mug, a larger cat and bat. I swapped the spider for a pumpkin, and I'll sew on button eyes after it's quilted. I’m happy with it, but it isn’t Cat-BOO-ccino anymore. What should I call this?

One Dozen Sheep Folds

 

When we met Joe, John was twenty-four and I was nineteen. Joe was seventy. We managed the apartment complex where he lived. We’d visit him monthly to collect the rent, and at random times when maintenance was required. The other apartments in the building all looked exactly alike. But the walls of Joe’s place were lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. During one visit, Joe showed us a very real-looking human skull. It was a souvenir, he said, from when he’d played Hamlet in New York. Joe De Santis told us he was a retired actor, but we didn’t realize until after he’d passed that we’d actually seen a lot of his work. He’d appeared in some of our favorite TV shows and movies. If we’d known, we might have asked him what it was like to work with Dick Van Dyke, Humphrey Bogart, Lana Turner, or Lucille Ball. Would he have been pleased, or annoyed? I guess we’ll never know.

Rail Fence Block

 

Slow Cooker Tamale Pie

 

1/2 pound lean ground beef, browned and drained

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Small can black beans, rinsed and drained

Small can Rotel tomatoes with chilis

10 ounces red enchilada sauce

1 green onion, sliced

1 package Jiffy Cornbread Mix (If you can’t find Jiffy, buy another brand and use 1/2)

2 eggs

1/2 cup shredded cheddar

 

Add browned ground beef and seasonings to slow cooker. Stir in beans, tomatoes, corn, enchilada sauce and onion. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours. In a small bowl, stir together corn muffin mix and eggs; spoon over meat mixture. Cover and cook another hour, or until cornmeal is set. Sprinkle with cheese and serve hot. Makes 3 or 4 servings.

Twelve Evening Stars

 

The Ward Clerk

He kept the minutes, typed each note,

And put them in the file.

The membership he knew by rote;

He labored with a smile.

The ordinations, births and deaths

He faithfully recorded

For forty years, until at last

He went to be rewarded.

The people he had known so well

Turned out to shed a tear,

And pay respect to this good man,

Gone to another sphere.

But as the choir rose to sing,

They saw with consternation

The good man from his coffin step

To count the congregation!

 -Author Unknown

Hovering Hawks

 

“Today many feel lonely and isolated. We want to hear each other’s voices. We want authentic belonging and kindness. There are many reasons we may feel we do not fit in at church—that, speaking figuratively, we sit alone. We may worry about our accent, clothes, family situation. Perhaps we feel inadequate, smell of smoke, yearn for moral cleanliness, have broken up with someone and feel hurt and embarrassed, are concerned about this or that Church policy. We may be single, divorced, widowed. Our children are noisy; we don’t have children. We didn’t serve a mission or came home early. Mosiah 18:21 invites us to knit our hearts together in love. I invite us to worry less, judge less, be less demanding of others—and, when needed, be less hard on ourselves. We do not create Zion in a day. But each “hello,” each warm gesture, brings Zion closer.” – Elder Gerrit W. Gong