Cupcake Wars

Tulip Tree by frances robson

Good evening ya'll. Come on in for a visit for it is a warm and beautiful night down here in South Georgia and we had a great supper at the Catfish House. They have a delicious grilled shrimp and we sure enjoyed it. It is warm enough to have to turn on the AC and I am looooving it and hope we don't have anymore cold weather but I am afraid we will.

As you can see the flowers are beginning to burst out all over. The picture at the top is our tulip tree or Japanese magnolia. I love these beautiful pinks against the blue sky and this tree will go from buds to blooms in a matter of a few days. A friend of mine says if you stand still long enough you can watch it open up and that is almost true for they bloom so quickly. To me it is one of the most beautiful signs of spring we have.

There is a new show this year that has captured my attention - The Cupcake Wars. I didn't know there were so many ways to make a cupcake and how many different kinds of ingredients you can add and some of them sound like they would taste good. Some of them sound awful and the judges seem to agree with me. I just don't see turkey and dressing in a cupcake and that was one of the loser's idea. That is just not a cupcake or at least what I think of as a cupcake. My idea of a good cupcake is sugar and chocolate and the rest is just icing on the cake....

This week I saw a recipe from Paula Dean for a brownie cupcake and she put peanut butter chip in the center and that sounded so good but I didn't have peanut butter chips and I sure didn't want to run to town for one ingredient so I decided to have my own cupcake war. It was fun and they turned out pretty well so I thought I would share them with you.

To begin with you can use your favorite brownie mix or your favorite brownie recipe. Follow the directions on the box and I use cold coffee rather than the water and I usually add an extra egg to give it a little extra volume. If you add a teaspoon of vanilla, it adds even a little more flavor.

After you mix the brownies, the fun begins. I had a 12 muffin pan and I lined the cups with cupcake liners after preheating the oven to 350 degrees. I halved the mixture into 2 bowls so I would know how much I had to divide among the 12 cups.

To 4 of the cups I added 1 tsp. crunchy peanut butter
To another 4, I added 1/2 marshmallow that I had cut in half with scissors - easier than a knife.
To the last 4, I added about 5 dried cherries

Divide the remaining dough among the 12 and be sure the middle ingredients are covered with the top layer of dough. Bake for about 20 minutes. Remember this is brownie dough and to me it looks half done when you take them out of the oven but don't overcook.

Remove them from the muffin pan and let cool on a cooling rack. You can ice them with your favorite frosting but I just sprinkled them with powdered sugar.

I called the ones with marshmallows - Chocolate Marshmallow Delight. The next time I am going to add a few chopped pecans and that would be rocky road delight. You could also use about 3 little marshmallow instead of the 1/2 of the large one.

The peanut butter one I called the Peanut Butter Delight and be sure and use the chunky peanut butter.

The cherries are Chocolate Covered Cherry Delight and this is my favorite.

The idea of being able to make 3 different kinds with one pan and one mix is a good deal to me and you could use whatever you like in the center. If you try these, let me know how you liked them and if you used different ingredients.

Join the cupcake wars with me and let's see what we can create.

Now ya'll be careful going home and come back to see me soon.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Elegant Southern Redneck Wedding

Good Monday morning to ya'll. Come on up to the 'Net Porch and have some sweet iced tea for it is warm, sunny, and wonderful outside. Great day to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine and gather some vitamin D and a tan. I have to re-pot some house plants a neighbor shared with me and hope they won't die from under watering or over watering for I tend to overdo one or the other. Green thumb I have not but maybe all five brown fingers.

I hope ya'll are not expecting a recipe today for I am tapped out on cooking right now. A buttermilk pound cake is on the schedule for one day this week and I will share that with you later on. Planning on having leftover roast and potatoes for lunch and maybe some field peas with snaps. Whatever it will be won't require a lot of cooking.

Saturday night I was searching for something to watch on TV and with over 100 channels I couldn't find a thing that looked interesting. Becoming desperate for some entertainment I found the Big Redneck Weddings shows and thought maybe that would be good for a few laughs. Well, much to my surprise it was worth more than a few laughs but a whole bunch. I couldn't believe that people would really go to those lengths to be on TV but after watching several weddings and listening to their conversations I came to a new conclusion about Redneck weddings and the following receptions.

These weddings were most personal for the people involved and they reflected the personalities of the couple, their friends and families. Now I'm not sure these weddings will make the society pages of the local newspaper and the Bride's magazine but they sure had a good time getting ready for the wedding and the ceremony and reception that followed. Kinda got my wheels to spinning and my thoughts awhirling about some weddings I could help plan down here in south Georgia. See what you think and if you need my advice, just call or email me and I will be glad to be your wedding consultant for an elegant Redneck wedding.

The first thing you have to do is set the date. There are several schedules you will have to check and these are: hunting season, NASCAR racing, SEC and local football, and dirt track racing. There are others but these are the most important for nothing interferes with these schedules except death and the funeral can be planned around these events also. You can schedule you wedding during a NASCAR race but be sure and have a big screen tv for the crowd to watch during the ceremony and reception. It would be a trifle loud but just talk louder and get it over with quickly or you are liable to loose the attention of the crowd.

After you select a date you need to find a place to hold the nuptials. The local church would be a good idea if they allow country music, beer in the fellowship hall and flag of Dixie over the front door. If you use the church we will need to borrow all your grandmother's ferns and strip the local roadside of kudzu to decorate with. If we are lucky, the wisteria will be blooming and maybe some magnolia blossoms for accents to make it quite elegant and classy. We can drape that kudzu over most anything but we will need to be careful and not let it touch any dirt for it will root and cover the church in about a week.

It may be an impossibility to get the church for I think the flag and beer might put a kink in it, so what are the options? Well the back yard, the cow pasture, the race track, down by the river, the front yard (cleared of all cars on blocks) or maybe the mud bogging pasture. Try to be selective in consideration of your guests for some of these locations may have a few hazards. You don't want your guests to have to scrape mud and other stuff off their shoes and rubber boots are just not acceptable for a big wedding.

Most cow pastures have cows and they leave gifts for you to step in and they don't smell too good. The back and front yards of your home would be a good choice if you remove all the cars on blocks, find the lost lawn mower and take the trash to the dump. You will need to mow the yard and bale the hay, trim the shrubbery unless you need to leave it long to cover up hole in the wall and it would help to borrow a bunch of folding lawn chairs. You might haul in a bunch of logs and lay them on the ground for your guests to sit on and then you could use them for the bonfire to roast the hotdogs and marshmallows for the reception. Just remember to pick the prettiest and easiest spot to gussy up and beautify.

Now we get to the wedding attire. I would recommend a short dress for the bride since it will most likely be held outside. Now don't get it too short or all the old men will have too much fun trying to look under it and have a heart attack but short enough to show off those new tattoos you got with your new husband's name. I know you want to show those off for they are quite elegant and a little big since you had to hide the other husband's name. That tattoo man is getting really good at redoing names isn't he? A short, red dress with white high heels will look really good and red doesn't show beer stains or get in the way of the clogging and square dancing that follows the wedding.

The groom's attire is easy - camouflage with a bow tie!! Be sure the bow tie's color matches the bride's dress so they won't clash for that would be terrible. Also be sure the camouflage has been washed, starched and ironed for you want to look your very best not like you just came out of the woods after a deer hunt. In fact, I would prefer you get a new set for you want to look your best. The boots need to be polished and laced up for your bride will expect you to look handsome and elegant. Remember, 1 day all dressed up won't kill you.

As far as the mamas and other family members are concerned just persuade them not to wear Daisy Duke shorts and halter tops for this is a solemn occasion. They will need to hopefully find a dress that does not show their boobs and booties for you want the bride to be the main star of this shindig. Big hair is acceptable and be sure and have extra hair spray and bobby pins to make it even bigger right before the ceremony for the bride and her family for bigger is always better.

Now for the reception. Hot dogs,marshmallows, barbecue, Twinkies, potato chips, fried chicken and watermelon are a must. The wedding cake made from Krispy Kreme donuts is a real hit and be sure to use KK for they are best and you can find those down at the local 7-11. For the topper, you can use the bridal bouquet we made from the marigolds and petunias. It will look really pretty. The groom's cake should be a cake made from layers of moon pies and be sure and have some RC Cola to go with it. The last one I saw made like this had over 100 moon pies and it was gorgeous. You can drizzle some chocolate frosting over it and you got a winner.

Now I don't drink beer, rather have sweet iced tea or coca cola, but if you insist, be sure and get a good brand. You don't want to embarrass your family by finding the cheapest beer at the Sam's club and pretend it is an expensive brand. Just go ahead and spring for the Miller's and enjoy.

For the punch just get everybody to bring their favorite flavor of Kool Aid, have a big washtub ready with ice water and a big block of ice in the center and pour and stir. I would stay away from too much strawberry and grape mixed together for that gets a little muddy looking. To make it a little more elegant, throw in some frozen Popsicles to add a little interest and beauty. If you really want to gussy it up, you can add some Mountain Dew to make it fizz a little.

Now don't worry about the honeymoon for you might as well as go on to the house and just save that money for a down payment on a new pickup truck or 4 wheeler. Remember, you will need a bigger 4 wheeler now to carry the new wife and the kids. After all, family time together in the woods, bogging, or the race track is needed for a close family.

There are several other details we will need to work out so just call me and make an appointment to discuss these. I would advise you to get a spiral notebook and some good sharp pencils and begin to keep lists of what you need to do and good calendar from the local funeral home to schedule all the tasks. We want to be organized so we won't forget any of the details. By the way, when you go by the funeral home to get the calendar, get a bunch of fans to use to keep the gnats away during the ceremony.

Ya'll be careful going home and come back to see me.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Breakfast Ideas

Jekyll Island Beach by frances robson

Good morning and come on in for a cold coke for, praise the Lord, I am wearing my flip flops and shorts and loving every minute of it. Now I know we are going to have some more cold weather but I am going to enjoy every day of this beautiful spring weather.

They are plowing the field next to our yard getting ready to plant something and that dark brown dirt looks like it would be fun to walk in barefoot and I probably will. When we were children we loved to walk in Daddy's footprints when he plowed and since he is Home, I will just make some footprints of my own and remember our sweet Daddy and how he loved to plow the ground, plant, watch it grow and share the bounty. So I think I will do that and just enjoy the cool, damp earth and thank the Lord for those great memories.

As you can see from my pictures, I am longing for the beach and we are going to Jekyll next month for a few days. It will be wonderful to put my "Toes in the Sand and my --- in the Sand" like the Zach Brown Band sings about. This is my most favorite occupation so I think I would make a stupendous beach bum, don't you? Since I can't do that I will take what I can get and look forward to our trip next month.

Thought I would share some quick, delicious and easy breakfast ideas with you that we enjoy. The first one is how I cook oatmeal with extra flavors and ingredients that tastes wonderful. I bet even if your children don't like oatmeal, they will like this way to fix it. It also is cheaper and tastier than the instant oatmeal mixes and just about as quick. I am using estimated amounts for I tend to just put handfuls in but will try to give some measurements.

This will be for 4 helpings and you can half it easily.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

Quick cooking oatmeal - not the instant
Measure water and oats according to the directions on the box
1/2 apple, coarsely chopped - with peeling
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. apple pie spice
good grating of nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 tbsp. brown sugar per serving of oatmeal being prepared

Combine all in pan and cook on medium heat until done - about 5 minutes. Stir often to keep it from sticking and keep the raisins from sinking to the bottom. Serve with butter or milk or both and crispy toast or English muffins.
The measurements for the apples and raisins can be more or less just add how much you want and sometimes it's how much I have. This is quick and sooo good.

The other idea I want to share is how to dress up scrambled eggs. You can serve over grits in a cup or bowl for your own breakfast in a cup.

Scrambled Eggs Deluxe

2 eggs per person
Your choice: Chopped summer sausage or other smoked or fully cooked sausage
Chopped ham - cured, baked or sandwich meat ham
Diced tomatoes - I like the cherry tomatoes cut in half
Bacon bits - from the refrigerator section of grocery or leftover
grated cheese of choice
salt and pepper to taste

Beat eggs until frothy. Spray nonstick skillet with butter flavored cooking spray and add you meat or meats of choice and cook just until hot, add eggs, continue stirring and add the tomatoes and or grated cheese and salt and pepper to taste.
When eggs are scrambled to your taste spoon over grits or serve alone. I like to have a bowl of grits and serve the eggs over them and have hot, buttered toast. I don't stir my eggs a lot as they cook but use a spatula and have a messy omelet type scrambled eggs.

If you like this spicy, you could add chopped chilies and hot sauce as the eggs cook. This is a dish you just do your thing but it is a complete breakfast, quick, easy and a good way to use leftover meats.

Let me know if you tried either of these and how you liked them for I really need some comments and suggestions.

Now ya'll come back to see me and I am going to go walk in the fresh, plowed dirt and enjoy.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Leaving Jekyll Island by frances robson

Hamburger Tortilla Casserole

Crocheted Rabbit Hat by frances robson

Good evening and come on in the house and sit awhile. We have had a beautiful and sunny weekend and warmer and that is what is great, it was warmer. It got me to thinking about planting a garden and since we are getting a little older we decided to go with some raised beds. That way I can sit on my little rolling stool and just roll around it and grow my vegetables.

I don't want to plant much but I have to have my tomatoes, cucumbers, squash,bell peppers and green beans for it wouldn't be summer without fresh vegetables you grow yourself. I'm also the daughter of Ott Polk and when it gets warm you have to start playing in the dirt with some seed and fertilizer and growing something. I think it runs in the family.

From mama I got my love for cooking and I think the 2 definitely go together for it tastes so much better with vegetables you grew with your own 2 hands. I will put some pictures of our progress in my posts as we put it together and begin planting for it is about time to plant some turnips and lettuce.

I fixed a really good casserole this weekend and want to share it with you. I am still trying to use what is in the freezer and pantry but make it taste delicious. Saturday I had hamburger meat and flour and corn tortillas I needed to use. I put these ingredients in a Google search and found several recipes but nothing that really sounded good so I put about 3 together with my own touches and it is good. Roy said it was a winner and good enough to share. I call it Hamburger Tortilla Casserole and it is good the first time and we found today it is good reheated. I plan to freeze some and I am pretty sure it will freeze well for all the ingredients freeze without problems.


HAMBURGER TORTILLA CASSEROLE

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb hamburger - lean like ground chuck or ground round
2 tsp. Smokey paprika
1 tsp. Cumin
1/2 chopped onion
salt an pepper to taste
2 cups shredded Jack Cheese
6 corn tortillas – cut into wide strips
1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)
2 cups niblet corn (I used frozen which had been microwaved for about 2 minutes and fresh would be delicious
1 small jar chopped pimento (drained)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can Rotel tomatoes
Optional: if you like it hotter add some red pepper flakes or some chopped green chillies.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 12 pan.

Cook the hamburger with the oil and add paprika, cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Add onions last few minutes so they will be slightly cooked. Cover and set aside. Mix the two cans of rinsed and drained black beans, pimento and corn together. Add a little salt and pepper but not a lot for the soup and the cheese are salty but without a little salt, it is bland.

Mix the can of Rotel with the cream of chicken soup.
Cut the tortillas in wide strips.
Layer the pan in the following order:
bean and corn mixture
hamburger
1/2 of the cheese
tortillas

Repeat layering until all ingredients are used. Pour the Rotel/mushroom soup mixture on top of the last layer of tortillas.
Bake for 30 minutes.

I didn't have a can of niblet corn but had several ears of corn I had frozen so I took them out of the freezer and microwaved them for about 3 minutes. I wanted them thawed and cooked slightly but still crispy and fresh. Cut the corn off the cobs and mix with the black beans. Fresh corn cut from the cob would be really good also and 2 large ears will give you plenty. I used the corn tortillas instead of the flour to add another layer of corn flavor and it was the right choice.

Can prepare 2 small ones instead of 1 large one and freeze one for later.
Try it and give me some feedback or comments and let me know what you think.

The picture at the top is one of my crochet projects this week and I think it is pretty cute. I am selling these at a local children's shop and of course I have to do one our great granddaughter.

Well, ya'll come back to see me and be careful going home and enjoy the coming week for it is supposed to be sunny most of the week so we can put our garden together and get ready to plant.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Sour Dough Herb Bread

Bread pictures courtesy ofhttp://www.krusteaz.com/brands/krusteaz/bread_machine_mixes/

Good evening and ya'll come on in for a visit. I would complain about the weather but a friend who reads my blog said I had sung that song enough and just get over it. Soooo, I will just say it is a typical winter afternoon and I am going to start a fire in the fireplace soon.

As you can tell from the pictures above I am going to talk about bread. When we were growing up, we never had a meal without a hot bread of some type which our mama had made. For breakfast we would have toast most of the time but other than that it was home made. Mostly we had her delicious cornbread and biscuits but she could whip a bunch of homemade rolls in a jiffy. Sometimes she would make homemade bread in a loaf but mostly it was her good cloverleaf rolls which we had when there was company or a special occasion.

We would even eat cold cornbread or biscuits for snacks. Taking the cold biscuit, sticking your finger through the side to make a pocket and then pour syrup in it and a better snack is hard to find. Syrup and cornbread is good also especially if it is hot and you put lots of butter on the bread before you pour the syrup. There is not much of anything better than good homemade biscuits and cornbread.

Mama taught me how to make cornbread for my first bread lesson but she and "Miss Leacy", my home ec teacher, taught me how to make all types of bread - cornbread, biscuits, and rolls. As we established our own family, I continued to make hot breads for every meal and Roy went from 175 lbs. to 220 in less than a year.

As our family has dwindled to 2 I have had to learn to cook less which is difficult but I am learning and we also freeze a lot. Most of my bread recipes make 2 loaves so I had not made any for a long time until I found a whole box of several bread machine mixes in the pantry. I gave my bread machine away but after looking at the instructions, I found there are instructions for using a regular oven and everything is already measured and it makes one loaf. The yeast was out of date but all you have to do is buy some dry, fresh yeast and use that.

I also use my mixer and the dough hooks so it is really easy and you can add ingredients to the mixes to make new recipes. The one I am making today is sourdough with Italian herbs so I thought I would share it with you. It really is easy for the dough hooks do most of the kneading for you but I like to knead bread - works out a lot of frustrations. Try this and let me know what you think.

Sourdough Italian Bread

1 pkg. sourdough bread machine mix
2 tsp. Italian herbs or Herbs de Provence
1 cup warm water
1 pkg. yeast

In large mixer bowl put 1/2 bread mix, yeast and herbs. Mix until herbs and yeast are mixed with the four mixture. Add 1 cup warm water and mix well using the dough hooks and then add the rest of the mix about 1/2 cup at the time. Mix well and then knead until the dough makes a ball. You can take the dough out of bowl when mixed, place on floured surface and knead until smooth.

Place the ball of dough in a bowl which has been oiled with olive oil, turn the dough until coated on all sides, cover with clean cloth, place in a warm spot until it has doubled in size. Punch the dough down with your fist, remove from bowl, shape into a loaf and place in oiled loaf pan OR shape into a round loaf and place on oiled baking sheet. Brush the top with olive oil, cover with clean cloth, place in warm spot and let rise until doubled in size. Place in preheated 400 degree oven for about 20 - 25 minutes. When done, it will be brown on top. Remove from oven, remove from pan and let cool on rack. I like to slice it and eat with olive oil and additional Italian herbs on top.

For a cheesy bread, when shaping the loaf, with rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle on a floured surface, sprinkle with shaved or grated Parmesan cheese, roll, seal the edges and place in loaf pan oiled with olive oil.

You can use any type of cheese you like but I really like the fresh, shaved Parmesan but just use your imagination and have fun. The bread mix makes it really easy and there are several brands of machine mixes you can use. I have used the ones from King Arthur, but choose what is available. I have added dried cranberries to the Hawaiian mix, and cinnamon and raisins to the sweet bread mix. Let your imagination go and what can happen but it won't taste good but after all it is just a loaf of bread.

I hope you will try some of these and let me know what you think.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Sweetheart Dessert

Pound Cake with Strawberries and Chocolate Syrup

Good evening and come on in out of the rain and cold for it is a bleak evening and getting colder by the minute. We need the rain but the cold can go far, far away. I am still waiting on the Climate Change or at least some Global Warming to come this way but at least we don't have snow and ice, yet. They say it's coming but maybe it won't, crossing my fingers.

I want to share my mom's sour cream pound cake with you for it is really good and makes a big cake. Pound cake is our favorite cake for we are not overly fond of icings and pound cake keeps so well. I also add extra flavorings to mine for a friend of mine adds 7 flavors to his but I usually add one or two and lemon and orange are my favorites.

The picture is one of the ways we ate it this week and it was really good. The strawberries are some I froze last year from a local farmer. This is the recipe for sauce I make although it is not thick but sooo good.

Strawberry Sauce

4 cups frozen strawberries
1 tsp. cinnamon

generous grating of nutmeg or 1/2 tsp. powdered - freshly grated is best

1/2 cup cranberry juice or orange juice

1/3 cup splenda

Place all ingredients except splenda in glass bowl and microwave for about 8 minutes. Remove from microwave, stir and add splenda. If the strawberries are really sweet, you may not need any splenda or other sweetener or maybe less than 1/3 cup. Don't overcook the strawberries for you want them to be thawed and soft but not mushy- they will still hold their shape.

These can be used as a dessert with a little whipped topping on them, a spread for toast, or on top of ice cream or cake. It is versatile and sugar free if you use an artificial sweetener.

This is the cake recipe and was one of our mama's favorites and mine too.

Sour Cream Pound Cake

Ingredients
1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
3 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups all-purpose flour
6 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
Optional – add both of these, I do.
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon orange extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Add the sour cream and mix until incorporated. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Sift flour, measure 3 cups and then sift the baking soda and flour together. Add to the creamed mixture ½ cup at the time. Add the vanilla and pour the mixture into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 1 hour 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cook on rack about 10 minutes before removing from pan.

For the dessert above I cut a thick slice of cake and topped it with our strawberries and then put warm chocolate syrup on top of the strawberries. I put the bottle of chocolate syrup in the microwave for 45 sec. before putting over the cake. If I had some whipped topping, I would put that on before the chocolate.

It was delicious and you must try it. A great way to use the pound cake and next time I am going to toast the slice of pound cake a little before I top it. Doesn't that sound good?

Think I am going to fix me some right now for I have made myself hungry.

Take care going home in the rain and ya'll come back to see us.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Taste of Heaven

Early Morning on Jekyll Island by frances robson

Good evening to ya'll and I am so glad you stopped by for a visit. Come on in for a cup of coffee and a little conversation while we enjoy the sunshine out on the porch. It is a beautiful sunny day with a little breeze but getting a little nippy. This is a foretaste of what is coming for we are supposed to have rain and much colder tonight and I am not looking forward to it. Like most Georgia Peaches or Bama Belles I prefer hot and getting hotter but a little cold must come to help us appreciate the warm and I think we are in overload this winter.

I'm just glad I am not in 18 inches of snow like my nephew Jason up in Detroit or Sam and Cindy out in Arlington, TX. It was 14 degrees there last night and not much better today. This is the site for the Super Bowl this weekend and I am sure that many people are praying the airports will stay open and the interstates for if you pay thousands of dollars for a seat at this game, you sure don't want to watch it on TV or be stranded in an airport somewhere.

Is there something wrong with that picture? I can't imaging paying thousands or even hundreds of dollars to see a football game at ANY level. As much as I love Jimmy Buffet, Zach Brown Band and The Eagles, I wouldn't even pay hundreds to see them in concert much less a bunch of grown men running up and down a football field trying to kill each other. I like football but not that much and the SEC is more to my liking - Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi State. Seems like our values are just a wee bit warped or out of kilter.

My last posting was about choir practice, which we have tonight, and I am happy to say our music last Sunday was very good. We have 3 new choir members who sing wonderfully and we made not only a joyful noise but a harmonic and pleasing sound as we praised our Lord. It was a good thing.

The most wonderful part of sitting in the choir is watching the congregation while we worship with singing for our church likes to sing. We had a visiting pastor, who we know well, and I watched Mike sit on the front row and just close his eyes and listen as our church sang with beauty and worship. He said later it was beautiful and not like a lot of churches where it's like pulling teeth to get them to sing.

Our minister of music, Chad, is why it is such a worshipful time for he blends the old hymns, new hymns, and praise music so we all can sing our praises. Sitting in the choir, I saw eyes closed, heads lifted to heaven, hands clasped, and worshipping with their voices raised in song and worship. From children to senior adults the praises soared through the church and I know they wafted to heaven and our Heavenly Father smiled with pleasure as His children praised and worshipped Him with our hearts.

This is not unusual in our church for with wonderful leadership we don't just make music but we sing from our hearts and it is beautiful. We rejoice as we sing Holy, holy, holy and give Him all the praise for His mercy and love. You can almost see and touch the worship as it rises up from the congregation for it is like a sweet fragrance permeating the church and flowing upward and outward.

As I looked at the people singing Sunday, I thought this is what heaven is going to be like for there were young and old, white, brown and black, boys and girls and women and men all praising God together. I just wanted to shout hallelujah but realizing I was in a First Baptist church, I refrained and just closed my eyes and envisioned the throne of God and me standing before Him with all my brothers and sisters in Christ singing in perfect harmony. That is what heaven is all about and someday I will be there forever. Hallelujah and Amen.

Thanks be to God for the privilege and blessing to be able to sing - not always in tune but always in praise for Him who sits upon His throne and knows me by my name. Oh joy!

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach