Month: October 2019

Hello Halloween Harvest Homecoming

On By Betty OwensIn Betty Thomason Owens

I opened my post and this beautiful white space greeted me. How I love the fresh newness of white space. 🙂

Hello, Thursday Morning and Happy Halloween. I don’t usually celebrate Halloween, but I do hand out candy and smiles to young neighbors. Then I pray for their parents who will have to endure hours of sugar-enhanced wall bouncing.

The last day of October is important to me for two reasons. It’s the beginning of the holiday season. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, closely followed by Christmas and New Year’s. All wonderful opportunities to celebrate with family.

Left-to-Right: Judy, Norma, and Me!

AND it’s my “sister-cousin’s” birthday! Happy Birthday, Judy! This is the day when she joins me in whatever number year we’re in. We’re only a few months apart. I always get there first, of course. *Sigh*

And this is the picture I love to show, one that includes our other “sister-cousin”, Norma. She was our big sister. I loved growing up in a close-knit family where cousins were like brothers and sisters.

You’ll notice I was wearing saddle oxfords and carrying a purse. I was quite stylish at two—or were we three? Whatever, we were cute.

Times have changed. A lot. But, we still love each other, and we’re still cute.

Halloween, Harvest, or Homecoming? However you choose to celebrate, I hope the fun includes family and loved ones.

He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him. — Psalm 126:6

Tomorrow, I’ll be at Inspired Prompt – a multi-author blog dedicated to inspiring writers. I hope you’ll join me there!

 

In God’s Time

On By Betty OwensIn Betty Thomason Owens

How often have I heard that phrase in my lifetime?

What does it mean?

Hello, Thursday Morning readers, and welcome. I hope you’ll join me in a cup of coffee or hot tea, or whatever is your preferred morning beverage.

It’s chilly this week, but the sun is shining. I love this time of year, brief as it is.

We’re nearing the end of October, and that means we’re entering the final couple of months of 2019. Can you believe it?

Another year will end soon, like day’s end as dusk approaches. Then comes the night, filled with twinkling stars and the depth of darkness before the dawn of a new day.

Hope tends to wane in those darkest hours.

When will I see the salvation of the Lord? When will my prayers be answered? How long must I wait?

“In God’s time,” my soul whispers, echoing words from my ancestors over the years. They knew, didn’t they? Those souls who had endured great sorrow, and waited for the dawn when hope would rekindle.

I know life ebbs and flows like the tide. Seasons come and go. Through the good, we rejoice. In bad times, we mourn. In the waiting, we grow impatient.

I stood outside a tiger’s compound at our local zoo and watched as that great creature paced back and forth, watching and waiting. His feral eyes seemed to register the movements of the onlookers. What was he thinking? Did I really want to know?

Sometimes I feel like that tiger when I’m in a time of waiting. My patience wears thin and I’m tempted to give up.

Psalm 13 describes a similar journey as David asks, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day?”

He goes on for a few more stanzas, then he says, “Consider and answer me, O Lord my God, light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, ‘I have prevailed over him,’…”

David’s plight was much more difficult than anything I’ve endured, but knowing that doesn’t lessen my pain and anxiety. However, his next words raise the shade and allow the light of dawn to penetrate.

“But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.”

In those last couple of sentences, David lifts his eyes to the light of dawn and praises his way back into hope.

Awaiting God’s timing can be painful, but He provides light to guide us and renews our hope with a timely blessing.

In His time, may God crown your year with His bounty and overflow your path with abundance. [taken from Psalm 65:11]

[Click-to-Tweet] I know life ebbs and flows like the tide. Seasons come and go. Through the good we rejoice. In the bad times, we mourn. In the waiting, we grow impatient. In God’s Time #ThursdayThoughts #encouragement

Annabelle’s Oatmeal Cookies

On By Betty OwensIn Betty Thomason Owens2 Comments
Drought scarred maple tree and black cat.

Hello, Thursday Morning readers! This morning, I’m looking out at a maple tree that is trying its best to show off, even after forty days straight with no rain. We’ve since had a good bit of rain, but you can still detect the scars of drought on the tree’s leaves.

Can you see the black cat? It belongs to a neighbor, and I suspect it is watching for birds and squirrels at my feeder.

Just in time for Fall, I’m sharing a recipe from Annabelle’s collection. She loves to make these, because her neighbor, Tom Franklin, loves them.

If you’re new here, you may not know who Annabelle is and you may be wondering about it. She’s a sweet, middle-aged lady from the 1950s, who lives in my Kinsman Redeemer series of novels.

What’s so great about this recipe is, you can make the dough and put it in your fridge, then bake them later. You can even freeze the dough. The cookies are thin and chewy, kind of like lace cookies. They are wonderful served with hot tea or coffee. If you’d like a printable recipe, you can download it from my Facebook group page here: Betty Thomason Owens Readers Group.

Annabelle’s Oatmeal Refrigerator Cookies* – an old-fashioned, chewy, oatmeal cookie!

Ingredients:

½ cup lard (I prefer softened butter, but you can also use your favorite vegetable shortening)
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
1-1/2 tbsp. molasses
½ tsp. vanilla
7/8 sifted flour (that’s ¾ cup + 2 tbsp.)
½ tsp. soda
½ tsp. salt
1-1/2 cups rolled oats

Sift dry ingredients (except the oats) into a bowl and set aside. Combine the first seven ingredients (shortening through vanilla) in a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly with a large spoon (you can also use a mixer). Add the sifted dry ingredients and stir well.

Add the oats to the mixture. Using hands, mix thoroughly. Note: Annabelle preferred the hand-mixing method. You can continue with a mixer or stir with a spoon.

Additions: Tom Franklin loves these cookies with raisins, so Annabelle mixes in about ½ cup of plumped raisins (she soaks them in hot water for a few minutes to plump them). You can also add chopped walnuts or pecans at this stage.

Mold the dough into a long, smooth roll about 2-1/2” in diameter. Wrap in waxed paper (or plastic wrap). Chill until stiff. This usually takes about three hours, or you can leave it in the fridge overnight.

Heat oven to 400°

Unwrap dough and using a thin, sharp knife, cut in thin slices 1/8” or 1/16” thick. Place slices on a greased baking sheet. Note: I prefer to use parchment paper on my baking sheets. It’s just easier! And I use a serrated electric knife to slice it. It works best if you have left the dough in the fridge overnight.

Bake until lightly browned (about 8 – 10 min.). Annabelle’s note: Watch these closely, you don’t want to burn them.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies

[You can slice these thicker to make larger cookies, but they really spread, so leave lots of room in between]

*This recipe is adapted from one found in the 1950 version of the Betty Crocker cookbook.

Unwrapping a Novella

On By Betty OwensIn Betty Thomason Owens7 Comments

Hello, Thursday Morning readers! A couple words about the weather: Hot. Dry.

I’m not complaining, but rejoicing that our A/C unit is working. I do love Fall, so it will be missed. 🙂

It’s hard for me to admit, but I’m kind of a scrooge when it comes to Christmas. I love some things about the season itself, but honestly, I like Christmas to occur in December. What makes it such a special season (to me) becomes not so special when it goes on for months, or even all year.

But, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Sandra Ardoin’s Christmas novella, Unwrapping Hope. It was not over-the-top Christmas-y, but I definitely absorbed the feel of the season as I read. Ardoin’s historical fiction is authentic, drawing the reader into the era, as well as the season.

The main character, Phoebe Crain, lives under a dark cloud of pain and mystery. Even the reader doesn’t know her past until it surfaces near the end. Phoebe is flawed, but I came to appreciate her strength as she casts her pride to the wind in order to make Christmas special for her daughter.

I like flawed characters. I enjoy reading a story that brings their deepest flaws to the surface, but doesn’t heal the flaws or even make them go away. A well-told story shows its readers how love can accept and encompass those differences. That’s so much more realistic and for me, oh, so satisfying.

My only complaint about Unwrapping Hope? It’s short! It is a novella, after all. So, I was pleased to discover that this story will open a series called “Widow’s Might.” I like the name and the implications behind the name. That’s another part of the story I enjoyed—this character didn’t wallow in her misfortunes—she joined together with other widows to help bring relief where needed.

Click-to-Tweet: Unwrapping Hope by @SandraArdoin is not your typical cookie-cutter Christmas tale, and it earns an easy five stars from me. #BookReview #NewRelease

A Bit About the Book – Unwrapping Hope

Phoebe Crain, an accomplished pianist, lives in near poverty to protect her five-year-old daughter from scandal. When Phoebe receives a handcrafted cigar box by mistake, her desperation to give the child something special for Christmas drives her to suggest a trade with Spence Newland, a man she views as no more principled than her daughter’s late father. But the more time she spends with the department store heir, the more Phoebe struggles to keep up her guard against him.

Spence believes the cigar box will help him gain a reclusive investor’s financial support for his proposed five-and-ten-cent stores, demonstrating his ability to manage the family fortunes. Yet he hesitates to bargain with a widow who mistrusts him for no apparent reason…until he meets a charming little girl at the train station who awaits the arrival of a prince.

Will a betrayal in Phoebe’s past and Spence’s unraveling plans derail their hope for happiness and keep a child’s fairy tale from coming true? [Release Date: Oct. 15]

Click to Preorder

About the Author – Sandra Ardoin

As an author of heartwarming and award-winning historical romance, Sandra Ardoin engages readers with page-turning stories of love and faith. Rarely out of reach of a book, she’s also an armchair sports enthusiast, country music listener, and seldom says no to eating out.

Visit her on her website. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, and BookBub. Become a member of the Love and Faith in Fiction community and discover what’s upcoming, and learn of specials and giveaways.