Buckeye Bliss

Peanut butter balls—buckeyes—are a Christmas favorite. 

If you have access to real buckeyes, you 

probably should not get a kick out of placing a few of those in the 

candy tin with these delicious peanut-butter-and-chocolate ones.

I wouldn't dream of showing up at a holiday gathering without 

a generous collection of these for the dessert table. 

It's easy to make these ahead and hide them in a 

cool spot until it's time to share. 

Good luck with that. 

After making these for decades, I'm happy to share more 

detailed directions for a double batch—my standard.

- Combine softened butter, peanut butter, and sugar to 

form a stiff dough.

- Roll into 1" balls and place on a waxpaper-covered cookie sheet.

- Chill in the freezer for about 15 minutes.

- While you wait, melt one square of candy wax in a double boiler until clear, then add two bags of dark chocolate morsels. Stir until smooth.

- With a toothpick, dip chilled balls in melted chocolate. 

- Store in the refrigerator so you get a nice snap when you take a bite.

It's all about the snap, folks. 

Enjoy!

*****

If you make these, I'd love to see you with your finished product!

Share them and tag me on Instagram. 

 

Almost-Fall Words to Share

It's pink diamond hydrangea season on our Kentucky acre. 

Piled in this old silver-plated stand, their rural elegance shines.

TIp: If you cut these after the petals feel papery-dry, 

they'll stay lovely through the fall, until you throw them 

out and deck the halls for Christmas.

And they pair so well with ghostly-white pumpkins. 

Small ball gourds--scrubbed, polished, and ready for purchase. 

This one with the twig wreath opening is a favorite.

Lots of time to ponder while scrubbing gourds ... 

And one of four tiny hooligan pumpkins that the deer missed, grown 

from last year's seeds. 

Who does not enjoy saying hooligan pumpkin?

I'll be repeating that the rest of the day.

This from a person who chooses paint 

colors based on the chip titles ... 

It's why September Fog is on the walls in our guest room. 

Words, my friends, make all the difference. 

All.

Handmade Gifts

How do you feel about handmade gifts? 

I've always hesitated to gift my own creations, believing them to be a little bit "less than."

Less valued than store-bought; less useful than a gift card; 

less dazzling than whatever the most popular social influencer recommends--"swipe up!"

But this year, I'm feeling some freedom to give handmade. 

So this morning I handled brittle antique sheet music and forced 

myself to cut it, recalling how the pages were rescued from the trash. 

Folding tattered edges into shape took extra time, but I didn't mind, 

envisioning the final lovely outcome.

I shrugged aside qualms and pushed a wooden brace through 

centenarian page layers, taking care not to waste a single scrap of print.

 

That's when phrases from Psalm 103 slid into the corner of my heart.

God forms you in the same way, the Spirit seemed to hint. 

"For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust." 

He knows you're often fragile, brittle, tattered.

"As for man ... your days are like grass--blooming, vanishing, forgotten."

Yet He tenderly chooses you anyway, knowing the potential for glory exists. 

"But from everlasting to everlasting the loving devotion 

of the LORD extends to those who fear Him."

In unmatched patience, He shapes, folds, and fashions you into the 

image of the blessing He intends to gift to others.

" ... we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, 

which God prepared in advance for us to do." 

(Ephesians 2:10)

And just like the psalmist, my soul rose up in joy. 

Bless the Lord ... bless the Lord ... bless the Lord.