The Famous Blueberry Festival in Indiana

This Brilliant Blueberry Festival In Indiana Marks The End Of Summer

The Fairy Tale

Fairy tales, lust and love. Somewhere in your younger years you thought of these three things. The dress in white. The man in the tux.

The days of thinking of no one else but him/her. The nights of lovemaking under the stars. The house, the babies, the laughter then the tears.

 

Why, why does this happen? You were so in love? If I had the answers; I may not be divorced today. I don’t know why things change. Perhaps the bills start things out. Companies having their handout for money.

 

Work and more work to make sure there is adequate money to cover bills, food, insurance, gas and of course; I could go on and on.

 

Somewhere the glitter leaves and reality sets in. Sometimes marriage counseling prior to the wedding helps. It helps set the goals of what each wants to bring to the relationship. Even then, this doesn’t always help.

 

The world is full of glitter in black masks.

It comes in many styles such as stress, overweight, insecurities, failure and many more. There is always someone out there leering near by, watching your eyes, and feeling your losses. They are there, waiting, tempting you to respond to their call.

 

A person at the bar, a hunk at the gym, a co-employee. They are all around us, and ready to make us feel better. When we are hurting or confused, not sure where we stand in a relationship; this is the time temptation comes along.

 

Now don’t get me wrong my friends. Not every person is devious. There are thousands of people who care and many who would not consider breaking up or interfering with a marriage. We do have to face the facts though. Life is delicate and easily breakable.

 

Don’t believe me? Take a look for a few weeks at the divorce filings. It is so sad to see many who have been married less than a year or even six months; filing for divorce. It sometimes appears that there surely was an argument and instead of seeking help, they sought a divorce attorney. You know, the I’ll show you attitude?

 

Then their are the relationships that have lasted fifteen, sixteen and forty years that have filed. The mid-life crisis? What is that exactly?

mid·life cri·sis

noun

noun: mid-life crisis

1. an emotional crisis of identity and self-confidence that can occur in early middle age.

 

Sometimes this can occur from The Change. Wow, what a phrase, but so true.

Hormones bouncing, hot flashes, the kids are moving out. Suddenly it is just the two of you again and now what do you do? Weight gain has occurred. You have time to go to the gym. You get in shape. People notice. Your head swells like a big balloon.

Guys flirt, you flirt back. It feels good. Darn, how long has it been since this has happened?

 

Well, as you can see, there are many reasons that the fairy tale can go up in flames but it doesn’t mean the light has to be snuffed completely. You just have to get the help needed for the issue and without delay. First, you may ask yourself, do I still love the person I have been involved with or married to all these years?

 

If the answer is yes, then there is hope. Pray, seek counseling, change the routine at home. Smell good, look good, think of him/her before yourself. Have a picnic in your bedroom with candles. Put the kids to bed early. Put the cell down, turn the TV off. Change it up. Do what ever you need to do to salvage what was good.

 

If you have tried your best and it still fails, well, this is the ultimate suck-ass situation of all. How do you go on? What about all those years spent together. I don’t have the answers, but I can offer suggestions. Stay close to your family. They do love you. They will listen. They will emotionally support and encourage you. Lastly, don’t forget to pray. Prayers are answered. God listens. God feels your pain. God knows your future.

 

Enough said for tonight.

I dedicate this to a very special man in my life.

I love you. R.W.

 

Pumpkin Streusel Donuts

yield: 6 DONUTS

prep time: 10 MINUTES

cook time: 13-15 MINUTES

Bake (yes bake!) up a batch of these Pumpkin Streusel Donuts today! All the delicious flavors of fall in one breakfast treat!

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE DONUTS:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

FOR THE STREUSEL:

• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

FOR THE GLAZE:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 Tbsp milk
• 1 tsp cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degree F. Spray donut pan (I use this one) with baking spray. Set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar until creamy. Add in egg and vanilla, beat until combined.
3. Blend in pumpkin puree. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Beat until well combined. Batter will be very thick. Spoon into a large plastic resealable bag. Snip off the corner and pipe into donut pans, filling them about 1/2 full.
4. In a small bowl, combine streusel ingredients with a fork. Sprinkle generously over pumpkin batter. Press streusel gently to the top of batter (it will fill the donut cavity completely at this point).
5. Bake in 375 degree oven for about 13-15 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and cool in pan for about 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack.
7. Once cooled, whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over cooled donuts. Allow to set about 5 minutes and enjoy!

This delicious recipe brought to you by SHUGARY SWEETS
https://www.shugarysweets.com/pumpkin-streusel-donuts/

Caramel Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

yield: 5-6 DOZEN

prep time: 10 MINUTES

cook time: 12 MINUTES

My favorite recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies. I added in some caramel bits and chopped pecans for a decadent, chewy delight!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 bag (11.5oz) milk chocolate morsels
• 1 1/4 cup caramel bits (or whole caramels, chopped)
• 1 cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, brown sugar and sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, vanilla and milk and beat an additional 2 minutes.
2. Add flour, baking powder and salt and beat another 2 minutes. Fold in chocolate morsels, caramel bits and pecans.
3. On a parchment paper lined baking sheet, drop cookie dough using a 2 Tbsp scoop. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 12-14 minutes.
4. Allow to cool on wire rack. Store in a airtight container for up to one week.

• To freeze cookie dough, scoop dough onto a parchment paper lined, freezer safe, cookie sheet. Freeze for about 30 minutes. Remove dough and place in a freezer bag, labeled. When ready to bake, remove desired amount of dough and bake as directed. Add several minutes for frozen dough.
• I use a pizza stone to bake my cookies, I find they spread less and don’t brown on the bottom as fast. If you are having trouble with your cookies spreading, refrigerate the dough until chilled, this will help! ENJOY!

This delicious recipe brought to you by SHUGARY SWEETS
https://www.shugarysweets.com/caramel-pecan-chocolate-chip-cookies/

One By One

I was really surprised that I received a phone call from my Orthopedic doctor yesterday. This goes back to last month when I went to see him about my toes curling  under and my unmistakable weeble-wobble.

Medicare does not generally pay for something when it doesn’t pertain exactly to my disability issue. Inserts for shoes have been taken away by the many cuts in Medicare. Now my feet have to look deformed in order to get help. I don’t know about you but when my toes curl under; they look deformed.

Well God answered a miracle once again. The inserts are going to be covered by insurance. No, they won’t help me stand-up longer but they will help balance out the bottom of my feet and hopefully help keep my toes from curling under.

This is one fight I have won. It doesn’t mean the disease won’t win in the end. What it does mean is I am climbing over stones; one by one.