Sunday, May 1, 2011

We're into the third day of our craft show at the Maple Syrup Festival.  Our sales are down a bit from last year, but given the price of gas and what's going on with the economy, we are extremely grateful to be doing so well. In a time when people are watching their finances much more closely, we are blessed that they find our products worthwhile to buy. I have pics and video, but I left my camera at the booth and will update later. Each craft show is a surprise as to what will sell.  This year we sold a lot of soap and candles.  Some shows we don't sell a single candle.  Last year there was a fudgemaker down the aisle from us.  This year she wasn't there and we have sold all but one box of fudge.  Last year there was another soapmaker - this year she wasn't there.  You just never know.  Another factor is that the weather was nice so we had more competition from the outside vendors.  Last year it rained and a a lot of them went home.  Sunday is generally our lowest of the threes days, but again, the weather is nice so we may get people who come by before the parade.

One of the fun things about doing craft shows is now that we are into our 5th year, we are getting to know the regulars.  One of our favorites is Catha Thomas from CT Treats.  Her granola is, well, decadent.  If you haven't tried it, look her up on her website or on Facebook.  Not only is her granola super yummy, but she is a fun person to get to know.  We don't do the Highland Festival Show in Alma because outdoor shows are not a good venue for us, but we do participate in the 5K and you can bet that we make a beeline for her booth after the race.

Back later with pics from the weekend.

Word of the day:
Second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday – Solemnity
Feast of the Church : Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy SundayToday Pope Benedict XVI presides at the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II
Saint(s) of the day : St Joseph the Worker
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 20:19-31.

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, «Peace be with you.»
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
(Jesus) said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you."
Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe."
Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of (his) disciples that are not written in this book.
But these are written that you may (come to) believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name.

Monday, October 26, 2009

I am a huge fan of Flylady. Each year in October she starts her Holiday missions
Today is day #6 and I am just now getting on board, but as Flylady says, "you are never behind. Just jump in where you're at!"

Monday's Holiday Mission

I have a batch of chocolate peanut butter fudge made, Maddie McDoogle has a full belly and is practicing her roll-overs, I have a load of laundry drying, and I am tackling my washer-dryer hotspot.

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Word of the day:
Monday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time
Today the Church celebrates : St. Demetrius, St. Evaristus, Pope and Martyr (+ 112)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 13:10-17.

He was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath. And a woman was there who for eighteen years had been crippled by a spirit; she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect. When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, "Woman, you are set free of your infirmity." He laid his hands on her, and she at once stood up straight and glorified God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath, said to the crowd in reply, "There are six days when work should be done. Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day." The Lord said to him in reply, "Hypocrites! Does not each one of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger and lead it out for watering? This daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now, ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day from this bondage?" When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated; and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him.

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Saturday, April 18, 2009

I made the maple fudge yesterday. It tastes really good, but it didn't cut as nicely as the others. I'm guessing the maple syrup had something to do with it. I am going to make a batch with walnuts today and do a little tweaking.

Yesterday, Claire helped me cut the latest batch of soap. Later she was my helper as I boxed fudge. She handed me the boxes. It's nice to have another pair of hands around. While we were doing that, Clay was busy crafting some more pictures for me. He loves to make the pictures and then he will snuggle up in the chair with me and show me all the little details he put in them.

I had a few sales last night so I have to make sure I replenish the inventory for next week.

Here is a picture of our booth from last year's Shepherd Maple Syrup Festival. Pictured are Anna and Summer.



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Word of the day:
Saturday in the Octave of Easter
Gospel
Mk 16:9-15

When Jesus had risen, early on the first day of the week,
he appeared first to Mary Magdalene,
out of whom he had driven seven demons.
She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping.
When they heard that he was alive
and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

After this he appeared in another form
to two of them walking along on their way to the country.
They returned and told the others;
but they did not believe them either.

But later, as the Eleven were at table, he appeared to them
and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart
because they had not believed those
who saw him after he had been raised.
He said to them, "Go into the whole world
and proclaim the Gospel to every creature."

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Dontcha hate it when you oversleep? Or better yet, when you wake up on time, but then decide to catch a few more winks? I have weird dreams when I do that - and they're never good. They're the kind of dreams that stay with you for the day with that nagging feeling that all is not well. Even though you know it's a dream, you wonder where it came from and if there is something in your life that you are overlooking.

Anyway, my schedule for the day is off a little. My blog update will be a little late, but fear not - I will get my workout in. I will not get the dishes done before work. No fear, they'll be here when I get home.

There are some things in my morning routine that are non-negotiable; blogging is one and a scheduled workout is the other. Blogging keeps me grounded. It was my habit when running to pray the rosary on my warm-up. I still do that, although not all the time. Starting the morning with the reading of the gospel of the day has grounded me and has made a huge difference in my life. Praying the rosary is one of my favorite ways to pray, but of late I have found my mind wandering. When I blog, I have to pay attention to what I am doing.
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Last night I made the first batch of fudge of the season - plain chocolate. Harold is allowed to lick the beaters and the pan, but he has to give the fudge a rating. He gave it a 9. It would have been a 10 but I didn't leave enough in the pan for him to "properly" test it. A few years ago he tested a batch by sticking his fingers in it. Then he blamed it on the cat. (We have no cats.) Amazingly, the man survives. Tonight I will be making peanut butter fudge which I will hide because Harold (the cat) really likes that kind. I may leave a bit more in the pan for him, though, since he was a good boy and stayed out of last night's batch. But then again, there is the matter of that "9" rating. Hmmmmm, we will see.

Tonight is the season opener of Biggest Loser. The VCR is set! Ironically, I will be making fudge while it is on.

Well, I'm off to walk on this gorgeous September morning. Some things are definitely non-negotiable. Updates later.
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My stats for today:
Type: Treadmill
Route: Custom 2
Time: 18
Average heart rate: 113
Maximum heart rate: 129
Calories burned: 130
Down 2.2 from last Tuesday

Well, I ended up on the treadmill because of the time crunch. It wasn't as long a workout as I would have liked, but I did it. More and more, I am finding that consistency is the more important factor in this whole thing. In the past I would have abandoned the workout in favor of something less important; and all because it would not be a perfect workout. Duh - any workout is better than no workout. It's all about momentum. Leslie Sansone (Walk Away the Pounds) says on one of her tapes, "the more you sit, the more you want to sit; the more you move, the more you want to move."

Oh, and I got my dishes done, too!
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Word of the day:
Memorial of Saint Cornelius, pope and martyr
Saint Cyprian, bishop and martyr
Gospel
Lk 7:11-17

Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain,
and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him.
As he drew near to the gate of the city,
a man who had died was being carried out,
the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.
A large crowd from the city was with her.
When the Lord saw her,
he was moved with pity for her and said to her,
“Do not weep.”
He stepped forward and touched the coffin;
at this the bearers halted,
and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”
The dead man sat up and began to speak,
and Jesus gave him to his mother.
Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming,
“A great prophet has arisen in our midst,”
and “God has visited his people.”
This report about him spread through the whole of Judea
and in all the surrounding region.

Word of the day:
Today's reading recounts one of many intances of resuscitation that occur in the Scriptures, both Old Testament and New. The widow’s son raised by Elisha in 2 Kings 4:32-35, Jairus’ daughter in Luke 8, Lazarus in John 11 are also accounts of resuscitation. This does not mean that these people were not dead, they clearly were; Lazarus had been in the tomb 3 days. There occurs, however, only one resurrection and that is the resurrection of Jesus. Those who were resuscitated would die again. Man may resuscitate, but only God resurrects. Jesus lives and through him, even though we die, we will live again. Thanks be to God!


God bless the troops!