Cream Cheese Cake

Crust:
¾ lb (375 g) sweet plain cookies or graham crackers, crushed
¼ cup sugar
½ cup (125 g) butter, melted
2 t cinnamon

Filling:
1½ lb (750 g) cream cheese
1/8 t salt
1 cup sugar
4 eggs, well beaten
1 T lemon juice
2 cups (500g) sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 t vanilla

To make the crust, combine all the ingredients and firmly press on sides and bottom of the 10" (25 cm) spring form pan. (Reserve about ½ cup of crumbs to sprinkle on top of cake.)
Cream the cheese.
Beat the eggs with the salt and sugar until thick and light yellow colored. Add to the cheese with the lemon juice. Beat well.

Pour into the crust lined spring form pan and bake in a 375°F (190°C) oven for twenty minutes.
Mix together the sour cream, sugar, and vanilla. Spread over cake and sprinkle with the reserved crumbs. Bake in a 475°F (250°C) oven for 10 minutes. Cool and chill for several hours.

Serves 8-10

School Is Out

You can hear the merry whistle
And the laughter loud and clear;
There's happiness unequaled
At this special time of year.
There's a girl's delighted giggle
And a boy's impatient shout,
And you know without a question
It is summer --School is out!

You can feel the warmth of summer
And the sun against your cheek,
Smell the fragrance of roses,
Hear the babbling of the creek.
Kids are barefoot in the country,
Hiking over hill and glen.
Life is carefree, days are happy,
Telling school is out again!

There is lots of time for dreaming,
Picnics in the shaded wood,
Camping out along the river
Where the fishing's really good.
What a thrill to go in swimming!
These are joys without a doubt.
 All the kids are in their glory,
'Cause it's summer. School is out!

by Garnett Ann Schultz

Hot 'n Sweet Broccoli & Asparagus

¼ cup honey
2 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp ground ginger
½ to 1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 lb. broccoli, trimmed
½ lb. asparagus, trimmed
2 Tbs olive or vegetable oil

Combine honey, soy sauce, ginger and red pepper. Cut up broccoli and slice stem. Diagonally slice asparagus. Heat oil in large skillet; add broccoli and asparagus and stir-fry over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Add ½ cup water to pan; cover and steam vegetables for 2 minutes or until tender-crisp. Drain water from pan. Add honey mixture and cook uncovered until glaze is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.

makes 4 servings

Honey Mint Iced Tea

4 cups boiling water
½ cup fresh mint leaves
2 tea bags, green or black
¼ cup honey

In large heat-proof pitcher, pour boiling water over mint and tea bags. Whisk in honey. Let steep 5 minutes. Remove tea bags; cool. Refrigerate until ready to serve. To serve, pour over ice.

Serves 4

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Maternal Song

by Sudie Stuart Hager

How can I tell a mother's worth?

By a song of the all-sustaining eart:

The earth that watches young plants rise

With arms outstretched to the distant skies;

The earth that gives them zeal to grow

But keeps their eager roots in tow;

That urges them to stand up proud,

Sustains them when their heads are bowed,

And strengthens them to face again

The thrusts of wind and hail and rain,

So they may bloom, bear fruit and seed

To meet the hungering, tired world's need.

I sing of the kindly, nurturing earth

To tell of a mother's priceless worth.

Mother's Day Picks

Here are a few shops that have inspired me with gift ideas for Mother. Maybe they'll inspire you as well.

 Zur Designs

Willow Walker Designs

 The Beaded Branch

Spirit Essence Art

Southampton Creations

Simmons Creek

Shes Batty Designs

Battys Bath

Sew Happy Designs

Sassy Clay Creations

Nightmaiden Designs

Elfling Creations

Libertydoll

Kaye's Creations

Katie Claud

JewelledTrellis

Charms N Things

Skyline Candle Company

Pegasus Soaps

Into the Dawn

Haffina Creations

Essensu

Emily Claire Creations

CNewcomb's Wood Work

The Bon Bon Babe

Art of Linda

Dawn Correspondence

Dale B Crafts

Cat's Wire

Butterfly Crafts

Beadacious1221Access520

Char Spirit

 Creative Cove Jewelery Designs

 Cat's Wire

Ambient Girl Designs

28 Sides Designs

Colt Pixy

Linda Rose Originals

 The Vintage Diva

Aislinns Erotic Jewels

I hope you enjoy these selections as much as I did picking them.

The Girl That I Used to Be

Author Unknown

She came tonight as I sat alone,

The girl that I used to be.

She gazed at me with her earnest eyes

And questioned me reproachfully.

"Have you forgotten the many plans,

The hopes that were held for you;

The great career, the splendid fame,

And the wonderful things to do?"

"Where is your mansion of stately height,

With its gardens surpassing fair?

The silken robe that was planned for you

And the jewels for your hair?"

And as she talked I was very sad

For I wanted her pleased with me,

This slender girl from the shadowy past,

The girl that I used to be.

The gently arising I took her hand

And guided her up the stair

Where peacefully sleeping my babies lay . . .

Innocent, sweet and fair.

I told her that they were my only gems,

And precious they are to me;

That my silken robe is motherhood

Of happy simplicity.

That my mansion of stately height is love,

And the only career I know

Is serving each day within sheltering walls

The dear ones who need me so.

And as I spoke to my shadowy guest,

She smiled through her tears at me . . .

For I saw that the woman that I am now

Pleased the girl that I used to be.

Honey Fruit Yoghurt

1 lb cooking apples

2 T sugar

½ cup water

4 T honey

1½ c plain yoghurt

3 T raisins

Peel, core and slice the apples. Put in a saucepan with the water and sugar and cook, covered, until soft. Cool. Drain. Mix the honey with the yoghurt. When the apples are cool, mix in the raisins. Place in individual dishes and top with the yoghurt and honey mixture.

Serve 4-6

My Mother

Author Unknown

If I were asked to give a thought

which is one word would speak

A unity of brotherhood,

a sympathy complete,

A hundred happy cheery ways,

a mind that knows its own,

Contented 'midst a throng of folk,

yet peaceful when alone,

A heart htat sheds its silent glow

to brighten many another,

Without a moment of delay, I'd say,

"You mean my mother."

Honey Lemon Squares

½ cup butter or margarine, softened
¼ cup powdered sugar
1 cup + 1 Tbs flour, divided
¾ cup honey
½ cup lemon juice
3 eggs
1 tsp grated lemon peel
½ ts baking powder

In medium bowl, cream butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add one cup of flour and mix until combined. Press mixture evenly into bottom of 9-inch square pan. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, whisk together remaining 1 Tbsp. flour with remaining ingredients until thoroughly blended. Pour over baked crust; bake 20 minutes more, until filling is set. Cool in pan and cut into squares to serve.

Makes 12 servings

Quotes About Mother

If there be aught surpassing human deed or word or thought, it is a mother's love. Marchioness de Spadara

One good mother is worth a hundred schoolmasters. George Herbert

My first desire for knowledge and my earliest passion for reading were awakened by my mother. Charles Dickens

Heaven is at the feet of mothers. Roebuck

No language can express the power and beauty of heroism and majesty of a mother's love.  E. H. Chapin

A Mother Must Know Everything

by Nadine Brothers Lybarger

A mother must know everything . . . 

That is, just about! 

How to bind a small bird's wing,

And get a splinter out.

How to mend a broken toy,

to soothe an injured knee;

To patch a little broken heart,

Mother's happy destiny.

She has to know the answers to

A million "whos" and "whats",

A lot of "wheres" and "whys"

Of questioning little tots.

When children air their troubles 

And see things through their eyes . . .

It means she must be both naive

And very, very wise.

She must know how to maintain calm

When the children shout,

A mother must know everything . . .

That is, just about!

Old-Fashioned Flowers

by Charles S. Kinnison

The old-fashioned flowers seem sweetest to me,
For some fancied reason or orther,
In each fragrant petal there's something I see
That always reminds me of Mother.

The mem'ry it brings me is winsomely sweet,
A mem'ry that never shall perish;
And in it the two of us smiling meet . . .
A love-laden mem'ry I cherish.

We stroll through the garden, and stop here and there,
Admiring the colorful splendor
Of flowers she's planted and nurtured with care,
With hands that were loving and tender.

We stop at the roses and chat for awhile . . .
She tells me how sweetly they're scented,
And there 'midst the flowers our hearts a-smile,
How happy are we and contented!

And here are the zinnias, the sahlias, and phlox,
The sunflowers, nodding and lazy;
And threading among them are neat little walks,
And there is an old-fashioned daisy!

And now as we're leaving the garden, I find,
For some fancied reason or other,
The old-fashioned flowers seem gentle and kind . . .
And so they remind me of Mother.

A Wonderous Gift

Author Unknown

A mother is a gentle touch,
The word, the smiling face,
And all the things that make a home
A cheerful happy place.

A mother is the woendrous gift,
The bright and shinging light
That God gave everyone of us
to teach us wrong from right.

A mother is the sacrifice,
The sympathy and care,
That makes each joy seem brighter still,
Each care less hard to bear.
A mother is the someone dear
Who's cherished all year through...
A mother is a wondrous gift,
Especially if she's you!