and the crowning glory thanks to my creative son:

So what is on the menu?

Turkey Breast (of course) with my special brine
Stuffing (homemade by someone else)
Mashed Potatoes (homemade by me and dairy free)
Gravy (mine and Campbells)
Mac n Cheese (mine based on a recipe from somewhere else)
Cornbread
Green beans (or broccoli, dunno yet)
Macaroni Salad (also homemade but no by me)

Dessert:

Banana Nilla Wafter Pudding
Sweet Potato Pie (store bought, yes i know it’s not as good as homemade )
Pumpkin Bread or cupcakes
Cool whip!

Gonna be good for sure. Starting up in 6 hours. Got all my recipes in order and just waiting to pass out so I can rest up for the morning. Looking forward to watching the parade on TV with my babies (husband, son, and inside agent LOL).

Have a blessed thanksgiving everyone!

My men took me out to TGI Fridays where I consumed a lovely dinner of chicken and shrimp with creamy mashed potatoes and vanilla bean cheesecake for dessert. My appetizer was the broccoli cheese soup. Our server was super nice. I really liked how personable she was. This is maybe the third restaurant we have been to where they actually treat you like a person and not an annoyance. In ten years, this is the best service I have received… TWO times in a row! Joyful.

Finished off the night watching tv and doing my cross stitch next to my wonderful hubby-bear.

Thank You Jesus for making me the mother of such a wonderful child with such a wonderful man!

When we returned home, I was able to pick up my cross stitch and relax while being served for the rest of the evening by my men. They are so sweet!

a father’s love!

We are planning to go to the Dr. Seuss reading in our area on Saturday morning. That night we have concert, but I am sure that he will get a lot of out of that. He likes to rap with us. So onward we go building our son’s 8th birthday to be one he won’t forget

We have a lovely master bedroom, a large child’s bedroom, a kitchen, and a living room. There is enough space to put a dining room table, tho there is no official dining room space. We have a bathroom with a shower *no tub* and not quite enough space to put a bathroom vanity, but spacious enough to make it look nice.

We have been here officially for about a week and a half. So far, I have updated the deco here, but we have some serious work to do later on such as replacing countertops and flooring in the kitchen. Hubby is also going to be pulling out paneling in our bedroom and replace it with the beauty of white sheet rock *lol*.

Oh and I heard from the publisher this morning… 2 weeks till I find out whether or not they are publishing my book. I announced that on Facebook already, but this is for all those who are not on facebook

ANNNNND We are both enrolled in NYDSOM .. NY District School of Ministry and will be credentialed with the Assemblies of God by the end of the year!

First, let’s deal with the actual meaning of the word Halloween.

The original word for All Saints day was Hallowsmas. Hallows means “saints” and the mas meaning “mass”. Take that meaning and apply it to the word Halloween. Hallows means “saints” once again and “een” is derived from “evening before”. Therefore, you get Halloween actually being the night before Hallowsmas, or the Eve of the Mass of Saints.

All Saints Day is November 1st, followed by All Souls Day on November 2nd. It is a two day celebration set aside for remembering those faithful Christians who have passed on from this life. The day has been celebrated by dressing as your favorite saint and telling their story. Unfortunately, many people believe that this custom derived from cultist backgrounds, which is untrue. The first day it was held was May 13th, which coincided with a Celtic holiday celebrating the malevolent unrested souls of their culture. The date was later changed by Pope Gregory III in order to cut ties to that specific celebration.

Samhein, the celebration that most Christians are worried about, is definitely celebrated on October 31st, but the only reason it coincides at all with the celebration of All Saints Day is due to the Florentine calendar’s holding that the evening begins the next day.

Trick or treating, as it is now, was developed independent of the celebration of the Saints. The children that dressed up as saints and went around to houses were asking for little cakes or treats in exchange for prayers for the dead. Mind you, this is very rooted in Catholicism, where they believe in *or at least they did till very recently* Purgatory. That said, when this practice originated, they believed you could pray a soul out of Purgatory into Heaven.

Yes, many of the customs that we know of now have borrowed from their Celtic roots. This was done as a tactic in order to gain more Celtics into the Kingdom. Unfortunately, this has been a double edged sword which has in many ways sullied the original purpose.

For those of us who would still like to keep All Saints Day in the fashion it was intended, feel free to rid your lives of all things that were celebrated as part of the Celtic tradition. Instead, embrace the truth of the Day of the Saints and the Day of the Souls so that we can continually remember the sacrifices the saints of our past have made for the Kingdom of Christ.

(((as for the jack o lantern… there is an interesting story behind that, too)))

Resources:

Wikipedia
New World Encyclopedia
TLC
American Catholic
History Channel

I have to doubly thank everyone who called, emailed, facebooked, myspaced, ninged, texted, or got hold of me somehow to wish me a Happy Birthday. That meant a heaping lot to me.

I also have to thank my buddy Vonnie for giving me a sweet card & some money toward the laptop I want. What a doll! God really has blessed me with some very amazing friends.

Today, I get to be at church and do the tomb scene with my fellow choir goers, get cake at my mom’s house, and have brunch after church. Should be fun!

Thanks again everyone! I LOVE YOU ALLLLL!!!!!!!

I’m not big on making myself known as one specified race, really. I don’t truly identify with any single one part of myself, but being a MINORITY at all in this instance makes me proud today. We have overcome, this is the day.

Lift Every Voice And Sing (Acapella) – Boyz II Men