~February Blessings~

It was such a blessing to be able to take January for some much-needed R&R. Sleeping in.....reading books and magazines I've longingly gazed at over the past few months....weekends in the kitchen cooking and baking with Jim.....cozy nites by the fire......watching movies......time with our children and grandchildren. All blessings I cherish more and more as the years fly by.

Among those blessings are my appreciation of the strides modern medicine's taken over the past few decades. My doctor sent me for a CAT scan to try and determine why I had such a hard time fighting off the pneumonia and bronchitis that invaded my body from October to the end of December. (couldn't have had anything to do with working 16 hr. days filling orders, now, could it??) Everything was normal there. However....they saw a mass near my pancreas. An MRI and several ultra-sounds later, it was determined I have a splenal aneurysm that my body miraculously calcified. It re-routed the blood to different arteries, in essence, saving my life! You can imagine how many prayers and rosaries I said over the past 6 weeks. I want to thank everyone who was said some 'heavy duty' prayers for a good outcome. As I've said many times before....prayers DO work!

And now it's back to life as I know it. RoseCreekCottage Studio is humming away. I'm busy filling Valentine's Day orders, re-organizing studio space, and creating new designs for 2011. My Heirloom Collection of hand stamped sterling jewelry has grown much faster than I had imagined, and I'm busy trying to figure out how to continue its growth this year, along with freeing some of my personal time so I can spend it by the sea...and with my grandbabies!!

With coffee in hand.....I'm off to the studio...which is one of my favorite places on earth~
Have a beautiful day, wherever you are in the world~

~Monday Blessings: Married At Last and A New Daughter~

Ahhhhhh.....I waited a long time for my first 'daughter'. Jackie and Jeff have now been married 8 years and have blessed us with 3 grand-babies. And now....a second 'daughter'!!! Amy and Tom were married last weekend. They planned the entire weekend....from the Open House at their new home Friday nite....to the beautiful marriage ceremony con-celebrated by three priests....to the magical reception. Everyone said is was "the most fun wedding we've ever been to". I know I will remember every detail all the days of my life. Amy looked beautiful....Tom, so very handsome....both of them so totally in love. They have their whole lives ahead of them right now.....and Jim and I not only get to 'watch' it unfold....but we get to be a part of it. Talk about blessings!!!!

More wedding photos to come~

~FingerPrint Friday......Traditions~

There's a song by Stephen Curtis Chapman that goes:

I can see the fingerprints of God

When I look at you.

I can see the fingerprints of God

And I know it's true.

You're a masterpiece

That all creation quietly applauds

And you're covered with the fingerprints of God.

I see God's Fingerprints in Traditions....those time-honored customs passed down from generation to generation.

Jim and I made Fried Dough last night to take to our grandchildren tomorrow. God's Fingerprints will be evident as we watch those little smiles and "Hmmmmmm"s when they bite into them. God's blessings at their best~

I'm reprinting last year's photos and column, as I'm busy in the studio today. Enjoy!

St. Joseph, the husband of Mary and the earthly father of Jesus, is said to be the patron saint of home, family and laborers. His Feast Day is celebrated on his birthday: March 19th. It's a Sicilian tradition to make Fritelles or Fried Dough on that day. Depending on the region of Italy you are from, they may be called zeppole, or sfinges instead. For an interesting picture collage of fried doughs from all over the world, click here.

My Nonna always used her homemade raised bread dough to make Fritelles, as did my Mom, but I've found that the frozen Rhodes bread dough works quite well....and is way easier!

All you do is tear off about 2 inch pieces of the raised, raw dough, and fry them quickly in about a 1/2 inch of hot canola oil. Drain them on paper towels, then roll them in granulated sugar. My Mom often tucked raisins into the raw dough before frying. I make one batch with raisins for the kids, and one plain batch for Jim. One bite into the sugary, doughy delicacy will have you hooked. They rarely have time to cool before they've all disappeared...no matter how many I make!

Whenever I fry them up, I'm transported back into time......standing in my Nonna's or my Mother's kitchen, swinging my tanned legs back-and-forth, long curls flying, licking every last bit of the sugary coating off each of my fingers, begging for "just one more".

I continued the tradition by frying up batches of Fritelles for the boys on Sunday mornings in March before mass all the years they were growing up. It's a tradition that we continue to this day.....whether it's just Jim and I, or the boys, Jackie, and the grandchildren. Fried Memories at their finest~

Buon Giorno di San Giuseppe – Happy St. Joseph’s Day!

Stop over at Beki's Blog to read more FingerPrints and join in the fun~

Click on the link to go to more blogs celebrating New Friends Friday~

~Just Fawnie and Me~

It was quite an adjustment when Jim went back to work on Monday. It was no longer, "Me and the Puppies"....but "Just Fawnie and Me". sigh.

He spent several days looking EVERYWHERE for Coconut: behind file cabinets, under the sofa, and in all Coconut's favorite hiding places. It broke my heart. If it's possible for a pup to be depressed...Fawnie is. He has sad-looking eyes and lays in his bed with his moosh over the side like he's mourning. I guess that's exactly what he's doing.

I took him with me to see my mom at the nursing home on Monday....but Tuesday when I ran to the grocery store....he let out long, high-pitched wails when he saw that I wasn't taking him with me. He's never been 'left' without Coconut, and was used to snuggling with him until we returned.

Finally, today....it looks like he's stopped looking for his brother. He follows me everywhere. In the past, that was Coconut's self-designated 'job'. Fawnie was content to stay put in his little bed in the family room, while Coconut never left me out of his sight!

We are snowed-in here in Ohio. We've had 37" of snow here in the SnowBelt, and are expecting more tonite and tomorrow. It's been a wonderful week of re-organizing and designing new creations in between making pots of soup, chili and home-made desserts. Jim's been enjoying the delicious aromas that greet him each nite after traveling through the 'tundra' from work.

On tonite's agenda: a roaring fire, chili, salad, corn muffins, freshly-baked apple pie....and of course, cuddling with Fawnie on the sofa watching movies. So....wherever you are in the world.....Cuddle-up and stay warm~

~It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas~

It's finally beginning to look like Christmas here in Ohio because it snowed. I LOVE snow. I mean, I really love it. Okay....not driving in it when it's icy. But snow, I love. Since I was a kid. So...it has finally snowed here. Finally. And it looks like Christmas~

I decided to count all my packing slips to figure out how many orders I had filled. I knew it was a lot. But I was stunned: I sent out 264 packages since Thanksgiving Weekend. Considering that I make each item or items IN those packages....that's a LOT. The orders are still trickling in....but hopefully, the end is near. I have to laugh at the emails I get, with questions of: "When will I get this?" (they don't bother to tell me WHERE they live!!) Even with shipping within 24 hours, they still insist I tell them exactly when the good ol' USPS will deliver their treasures to their mailboxes. (if I could predict that....I wouldn't be making dolls and jewelry!)

At least that explains my fatigue, and the reason I'm mainlining caffeine in any shape or form: coffee, lattes, chocolate, Excedrin, Diet Coke, more chocolate.....

I've finished baking cookies: Snowballs, Peanut Butter Blossoms, Italian Iced Cookies, Thumbprints, Date Squares, Coconut Bars, Hello Dollies, Spritz Cookies, Rum Balls and Decorated Sugar Cookies. Phew! Over 40 dozen cookies. Jim asked last nite why I bake so much every Christmas. Why? My mother did. Always. For the three of us kids. So when I became a mother....I did, too. Always. And now as a grandma...I still do. And always will~

I'm off to see Mom. I'm bringing Christmas cookies. Made from her recipes. Just like she made. Always.

Happy Thursday~

~Pssst......It's Me, Ella~

Psssssst...... it's me.....Ella. Gramma an' Grampa are taking me an' my brother an' my mommy an' my daddy an' my Uncle Tom to the island. It's so fun there. I have my own room. Amy is workin' on finishin' up somethin' called her 'masters'. I wish she could come too. She's fun. Gramma said next time. sigh.

We're gonna make banana pancakes an' donuts an' ronies an' cheese an' swim in the ocean an' make sandcastles an' eat icees an' play games.

Gramma says she'll be back writin' on her blog an' makin' more dollies in June. Pssssst......don't tell 'er I told you but maybe I can cavince her to stay til the fireworks shoot in July. I'm a pretty good cavincer when it comes to Gramma. (don't tell her I told you, 'kay?)

Gotta go change outta my tutu an' go pack my suitcase with my bathin' suit an' flip-flops an' my dollies now. I will cavince Gramma to let me write a post when I come back. With pictures. It will be good. Promise. Bye-bye.

~Cookie Philosophy 101~

This past weekend, Ella and I made Valentine Cookies. Her little 4-year-old hands tried diligently to pick up the sticky heart-shaped dough cut-outs and place them on the cookie sheets for baking. I was in awe of her attempts not to ruin any of the shapes. Sometimes her frustration got the best of her, and she'd say, "Grandma....you can roll this one again, 'kay?". In the end, we ended up with a platefull of beautiful pink cookies.

When it came time to eat them, she announced that she wanted the most beautiful one. She screwed up her little brow when I picked up a cookie that looked more like a circle than a heart, and had messed-up frosting. I explained to her that I felt sorry for it. What if no one wanted it? Anyone would want the prettiest one. But the uglier one may have been left behind. With that....she asked me if we could trade. She didn't want that poor cookie to feel bad! I pray she takes that piece of "Cookie Philosophy" with her as she travels through life. It would make her quite a 'Smart Cookie'. (sorry...I couldn't resist!) If only life-lessons were all that easy.

I designed a Valentine Cookie Charm Bracelet in honor of baking Valentine Cookies with Ella. It includes lots of heart-shaped cookies complete with 'icing' and decorations.....as well as tiny heart-shaped cookie cutters. I think you'll agree it looks good enough to eat....and it's 100% calorie-free! You can find it in my Etsy shop!
**SOLD** Thank you, Debbie!