October Gave a Party

October Gave A Party

The leaves by hundreds came -

The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,

And leaves of every name.

The Sunshine spread a carpet,

And everything was grand,

Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.
~George Cooper, "October's Party"



Grilled Bacon Jalapeno Wraps

Ingredients: 6 fresh jalapeno peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese 12 slices bacon



Directions: Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat.
Spread cream cheese to fill jalapeno halves. Wrap with bacon. Secure with a toothpick.

Place on the grill, and cook until bacon is crispy.

Besides the autumn poets sing,

A few prosaic days
A little this side of the snow

And that side of the haze.

~Emily Dickinson

Mushrooms By: Hidden Valley® Ranch

"Creamy Garlic Ranch dressing brings new flavor to the classic stuffed mushroom."
Ingredients:  2 cups unseasoned small croutons 3/4 cup hot water 1/2 cup Hidden Valley® Garlic Ranch Dressing 30 medium (3-inch diameter) fresh mushrooms 3 tablespoons butter 1/3 cup chopped green pepper 1/3 cup chopped red pepper 3 tablespoons chopped green onions 1 large clove garlic, crushed
Directions: Combine croutons and hot water in medium bowl; cover. Let stand 5 minutes. Stir in Hidden Valley Garlic Ranch Dressing; set aside.
Remove stems from mushroom caps; chop stems. Cook and stir mushroom caps in butter in large skillet until lightly browned and tender. Arrange caps in shallow baking dish.
Add 1/2 cup mushroom stems, peppers, onions and garlic to skillet. Cook and stir 3 to 4 minutes, or until tender. Stir vegetables into crouton mixture. Spoon mixture into mushroom caps.
Broil 6 to 7 inches from heat source for 7 to 9 minutes, or until lightly browned and heated through.
Original Recipe Yield 15 servings

How beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days.

John Burroughs

So here's my plan... my birthday was yesterday and I felt loved and laughter. Being an only child, birthdays were rather uncelebrated when I was growing up. I'm a partier. I love fuss and fling. But I have also had many changes during this year of growing, ups and downs, spiritual newness. I spent the morning having blood work, a mammogram and an mri of my lt. knee. Returned to the radiology group 15 minutes later because they had done my RIGHT knee. I treated myself to breakfast out while I read my Kindle. I spoke with friends and family via texts and cell phone calls. Two friends made Beef Burgundy, Caesar Salad, Warm Crab Dip with Baguette and an Eclair Cake for my "birthday dinner" - a special text was read with enthusiasm.

Thank you to my sisters of the heart!

My sons and their loves...are always the very best!

So again... here's the plan... I'm having a girls gathering very soon with treats, wine, fall ambiance,candles lit to offer thanks to the love that is given every day of the year. Oh, and home-made pumpkin breads.

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

Albert Camus

My friends are the flowers in the garden of my life. Jennifer

Friends warm your heart and home.

Flutter To

Tell me how you came to be,
your fluttery wings inside of me.
Up and down, you'd roll around.
Waiting for adventures found.








Patient baby, yes it's true.
Many nights, you slept them through.
You'd nurse and sigh, those bright blue eyes,
tiny hands could touch the sky.

Walking, new adventures still.

cuts and bruises, bumps and crashes,

911's - Matt, you were the busy son!

Teenage years were challenges more,
you struggled, stretched and finally soared.

                                                      Manhood has made changes true.

you see the world and I miss you.

I follow adventures as you go,

Nothing changes - I love you so.

                                                                                                                Jennifer Ingram

The Balance of Sisterhood

The Balance of Sisterhood

Matched sets we may not be,

But somehow combine to make a bold pattern.

Varied colors blend our many personalities,

and make a balance of sisterhood.

How is it you love music and art is my heart?

Why do I chat and you hold back?

Bright colors set me free,

Whites and cream release your soul.

Where do you end and I begin?

Sink or swim we need not know.

Friends and sisters, always be.

There is us and there is we.

Jennifer

My Teacher My Friend - As The School Year Closes... A Special Thanks

The following poem written by Samantha Abeel,

a thirteen-year-old girl with severe learning disabilities.

Writing became a way for her to share her feelings and to shine with her gift for words.

To a Special Teacher

by Samantha Abeel

When the sun rose

from under its misty veil,

you were there to watch,

like the birds over the sea.

When the wind came quietly

and rested in your ear,

you listened, as the earth would at dawn.

When the rain fell,

you reached out with your hands

and let it wash everything away,

like waves as they grasp the shore.

When the plain brown seed was planted,

you could already smell the fragrance of

the flower that was to come,

and you were proud

as a good gardener should be.

Thank you for believing

that there was a flower waiting inside

and for taking the timeto help and watch it grow.

When the sun rose

from under its misty veil,

you were there to watch,

and I am thankful.

my teacher my friend

From: Abeel, Samantha. 2001. Reach for the Moon. New York: Orchard.

As my school year comes to a close,  I see my seniors graduate....I look on with pride at how far they have come and what journeys lie ahead. I have also had the pleasure of experiencing relationships that have formed between teachers and students. Mentoring, friendships, enthusiasm, encouragement, stability. I am honored by the care and life skills they give. As for our Special Needs students - their gift has been to ME! Their love, endless smiles, helpfulness, school spirit, team spirit and care of others.  So this post is for teachers, care givers, educators - we all have something to learn don't we?  With Love, Jennifer

Thoughts For Tuesday...Wonderful, Luscious Wisteria!

Wisteria sinensis

Chinese Wisteria.

A twining climber with pendent clusters of fragrant, lilac-blue pea-like flowers in late spring and early summer.

draping, dreamy, dropping, drooping, luscious, lazy, lovely, luxurious, lavendar

and then there's naughty!

"Violet lavender drug

slipping beneath my skin,

 shucking off the stale air

 of too long shut in,

 too long shut away

 whispering to me

 to breathe deep and be."

            Wisteria Woman by Lisa Shields

Tuesday's Thoughts of a Gentle Soul

“But tomorrow, dawn will come the way I picture her,

barefoot and disheveled, standing outside my window
in one of the fragile cotton dresses of the poor.
She will look in at me with her thin arms extended,
offering a handful of birdsong and a small cup of light.”
                                                           William Collins

to dream to wander to fly to believe to love to hope to cherish to hold to be free to touch

Listen to the Warm .... Moments on a Monday

I live alone.

It hasn't always been that way.
It's nice sometimes
to open up the heart a little
and let some hurt come in.
It proves you're still alive.

I'm not sure what it means.

Why we cannot shake the old loves from out minds.
It must be that we build on memory
and make them more that what they were.
And is the manufacture
Just a safe device for closing up the wall?

I do remember.

The only fuzzy circumstance
is something where-and how.
Why, I know.
It happens just because we need
to want and to be wanted too,
when love is here or gone
to lie down in the darkness
and listen to the warm.

Rod McKuen  "Listen to the Warm"

Thoughtful Tuesday... Guru in the Garden

Come along with me on Thoughtful Tuesday...

where we can think about everything, or nothing or fantasy...

of being alone, thinking of a lover or cuddling with a furry friend...

bright cheery accents, flowers, fun things or fairies!

"And as it touched your cheeks so lightly

Born again you were and blushed

And we touched each other lightly

And we felt the presence of the Christ within our hearts

In the garden

And I turned to you and I said

No guru, no method, no teacher

Just you and I and nature

And the Father in the garden

Listen

No guru, no method, no teacher

Just you and I and nature

And the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost

In the garden

Wet with rain

No Guru, no method, no teacher

Just you and I and nature and the Father AND THE SON and the Holy Ghost

In that garden, in the garden, wet with rain"  

       Van Morrison

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
wreaths of happy wishes 
for your day!
                               
  jennifer

Have you ever looked at the shape of clouds?

CLOUDS

I lay down on the lush, green grass

looking up at the celestial sky

watching clouds perform

as they go floating by.

The sky’s theater sets the stage

as clouds pass through

on their merry way

entertaining my eyes

with wispy surprise

as I journey from earth

on mystical tours of billowy dreams

and marshmallow delight.

A castle that trails a rabbit’s tail

attached to the wings of a butterfly,

a whale and a cat,

a baseball and bat take wing

as they shuttle on by.

A jungle safari with lions and bears

emerge from a cumulus cloud

migrating in motion

to imaginative notions

embraced in pillowy shrouds

Rhapsodies in white

and the fairest of blue,

pre-nuptial visions of tufted preludes

and painting a picture

within the mind’s eye,

I watch clouds perform

as they softly float by.

 Annette Nasser

just a thought

Friday's Quote.......

Miss Rudy

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Maya Angelou

I had another title for this post BUT...

i didn't think it would
be appropriate to call it =
"BLUE BALLS" ...so I
BEHAVED... I'm
being as haved as I can!

Blue Winter Moon

The sirens sing songs

of longing to the

blue moon of winter,

blue-hearted drum

of the seas.They offer

it pearls,minute moons,

votive images wrapped

in blue seaweed & dance

it the dizzy dance of

the tides.

Rafael Jesus Gonzales