What I'm Up To

Let's see-the weekend was full.  Friday night Stan, Syd and I went to the Belgrade Festival of Lights just to watch the floating luminaries.  Syd even got to send one off!  I made a video, but my Sony camera saves it in a format that Facebook and Blogger don't recognize so I have to wait til Millie sends me the conversion program before I can post it.  Hope it works, it was breathtaking!  Saturday Millie picked me up and we took the two 7-year-olds to the Nutcracker.  Very, very good-great dancers and they had the Bozeman Symphony play.  It was a bit sad-the founder of the Montana Ballet Company passed away just a week ago.  She had sold the company a couple of years ago, but her mark was still on everything.  We sat on the aisle so I could get up and walk if I needed to-and I did!  Then to the Community Co-op for lunch.  Then home.  I had kind of an accident-I spaced it out as I went down the stairs and took the last step with my left foot instead of my right.  I wasn't injured and I didn't fall, but that hurt like holy h**l!  I laid my head on the bannister and sobbed.  It's fine now, and I think it even bends a bit more.  I had asked Stan to build me a short practice step, and after that he went right out to the garage and built it!

Sunday was church and our Advent supper.  I love that we get into the season so much now.  We even have three lit-up Christmas trees on the platform.  And we always light the Advent Candle.  I stayed home last night while Stan went to the Bible class.  Any excuse to be alone-something I don't get much of right now.  A lot of fun-I watched TV with my eyes closed!

This morning I made macaroons.  They are delicious-ever as good as what you get in Mazatlan.  Dulce de Coco is a regional specialty there.  The only thing-the recipe calls for parchment and all I had was wax paper.  I will NEVER make that mistake again!  The cookies were glued to the paper!  By the time I discovered it I had two pans baked, so on the last pan, I liberally applied no stick spray and took the cookies off the paper.  That worked much better!  I dampened the back of the wax paper, waited a while, and then peeled it off the stuck cookies. I have to remember to make a big note on the recipe.

Well, off to stretch out a bit and head to physical therapy.  I hope I can be at 100 degrees today, since Wednesday I was at 95.

Final Candle

This last candle represents the birth of Christ. Let's always remember why He came to Earth.

" ⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

¹³Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
¹⁴'Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.'"Luke 2:8-14

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

Fourth Sunday in Advent

Today we light the candle of Joy.

^"1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was with God in the beginning.

³Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴In him was life, and that life was the light of men. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

⁶There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. ⁸He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. ⁹The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.

¹⁰He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. ¹¹He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. ¹²Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— ¹³children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:1-14

Candle of Peace

Today we light the candle of peace.

"¹ A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

² The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD -

³ and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
or decide by what he hears with his ears;

⁴ but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.

⁵ Righteousness will be his belt
and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

⁶ The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling ^[a] together;
and a little child will lead them.

⁷ The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

⁸ The infant will play near the hole of the cobra,
and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest.

⁹ They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea.

¹⁰ In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. ¹¹ In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, ^[b] from Cush, ^[c] from Elam, from Babylonia, ^[d] from Hamath and from the islands of the sea." Isaiah 11: 1-10

Advent

Today is the first Sunday in advent. We light the first candle, the candle of Hope. We are waiting and hoping for Christ's appearance.

"In the beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God: and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him: and without him was made nothing that was made. In him was life: and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness: and the darkness did not comprehend it. " John 1:1-5

Come quickly Lord Jesus.