worth watching....

There are not that many movies out there that are worth recommending to others...but we have seen a few excellent ones recently that you might just want to check out.

We just watched 'Letters to God' with our granddaughters this week...a heartfelt tale of inspiration and hope.

A young boy who is fighting cancer writes letters to God, impacting lives in his neighborhood and school and inspiring hope among everyone he comes in contact with. 


And a most touching movie about the power of forgiveness...

...is called Amish Grace and based on the real life story that took place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania a few years ago.  Be sure to have the kleenex nearby!

We saw Secretariat on the big screen in October...but I'm sure it will available on DVD anytime, and is such an excellent movie!

Produced by Disney...and based on the real life story of the greatest race horse ever...it sends out the message that it is possible to triumph against all odds.

So...if you are looking for some viewing suggestions with a positive message...those are a few that are worth checking out.

Have a wonderful weekend!

breakfast at grammy's....

When the grands spend the night...

they usually decide what it is they would like for breakfast.  

I'm not really sure what they would call this...

...a breakfast sandwich of sorts, I guess.

  

Take one slice of toasted whole wheat bread...

top with peanut butter and jam...

carefully add a layer of cheerios.  

One of them invented it...

...the other decided it was a good idea...

and soon it was a breakfast favorite. 

Ryder likes his cereal dry...'with lots of brown sugar, please'.

Grammy doesn't really check what the rules are at home...

we have our own rules over here!

Maelyn (who is just two) came for a sleepover last weekend.

First thing in the morning she ran to the pantry and came out with a bag of popcorn twists in tow.

"Want popcorn twists, Grammy."

"For breakfast, Maelyn?"

"Yeah.  Good idea!"

And so she had popcorn twists for breakfast.

I'm just saying...the breakfast menu is always open for debate at Camp Grammy's.

I have three of them here for breakfast this morning...

we'll see what we can muster up.

The lunches are made...and are very healthy...

and peanut free since their school is a 'peanut free zone'.

Enjoy the day!

halvah...

Though many may never have heard of it...halvah is a little piece of my past that crops up every so often.  Especially at this time of the year.

We always had halvah in our home during the Christmas season...along with bowls of nuts that needed cracking...and mandarin oranges galore...and traditional Christmas candies.  Halvah is hard to explain...a sweet confection made of sesame paste...rather rich and greasy.  And good...if you grew up with it!  I believe it is a middle eastern and Russian thing. 

When I was a kid...my parents purchased halvah in a metal pan.  And when the halvah was gone...the pan became a baking sheet.  We used halvah tins in place of  a 9" x 12" pan...though they were a wee bit smaller. Eventually, the corners opened up...and the pans were not quite as useful for baking cake.  Many decades ago, Camel Brand switched their halvah packaging to plastic pans.  Though those pans found many uses...putting them in the oven was no longer an option.  My mother-in-law gave me a few halvah tins when we were first married...and I still have one among my baking sheets.

 
It was the perfect size for the gingerbread cake I baked last week...and so it got used once again.  Though it is definitely an antique...and looks a little worse for the wear...it did the trick! 

I don't see halvah in the stores I frequent...but the last time I visited my dad, he sent halvah home with us.  It brought back many memories...and tasted just like the halvah of old.  'Tis the season...for halvah!