White Chicken Chili and Prayer Calendar

Good Wednesday morning!

Wow! Although our Christmas Tea trip lasted a little over 24 hours, it seemed as though we had been gone a very, very long time. I've posted several pictures of the tea in the Gallery above. (NOTE: I will be adding a "Mantle" picture tomorrow and Friday... that's what they call a little "tease" to make you want to come back for more!)

First of all, I want to say the Mayor's Mansion Inn Bed and Breakfast in Chattanooga is fabulous. Beautiful rooms, fantastic breakfast, very hospitable innkeepers. It was great. We stayed up way too late (12:30) playing parlor games in the parlor (HA). Wendy and I found out after we went to bed at 12:31 a.m., Dee and Dawn took peanut butter pie down the hall to LeAnna and Tonya's room, and they stayed up until 4:30 a.m. (Wendy and I were NOT upset they didn't bring pie to our room... believe me!)

Two of the other guests at the Inn were Santa Claus and his wife, Mrs. Claus. They came for a quick get away after their busy season. (This man was really saying he was Santa, and from the way he and his wife dressed both days and the way he laughed... well, who am I to say otherwise.)

We had tea at the English Rose Tea Room which is a "real" English tea room, and we had the Victorian Tea. It was beautiful and delicious.

The trip back was very quiet since four of our tea friends were operating on four or less hours of sleep. But that was okay, too. It was a comfortable silence.

This year was our 10th tea and they all have themes. This year's theme was Celebration of Giving. Since Christmas was just a few days ago, and we were spending money at the Inn and tea, we decided to "give" each other two compliments apiece. I set out little red bags in the floor and everyone had to drop their compliments into the person's bag... kind of like Valentine's Day in elementary school. We then read the compliments in our bag. It was a very nice gift, and one that will not soon be forgotten, or broken, or thrown away. It was the kind of gift that lasts... the kind of gift when we're not feeling that great, or we've had a bad day we can look at the compliments and they will lift our spirits a bit. It was thoughtful, kind and from the heart. The best kind of gift.

Also, I got another Christmas card while I was gone, so the count is now up to 65. Like I've said before, I will accept them until March. (Who am I kidding? You can send them to me in August, and I'll be thrilled.)

Okay. A short little blog post today, but I am posting a recipe AND a seasonal tradition.

White Chicken Chili

You will need the following:

2 tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. oregano
4 chicken breasts (chopped) or 4 large cans of Swanson white chicken
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 (15 oz.) cans Great Northern beans (undrained)
1 tsp. lemon pepper
1 can chopped green chilies (undrained)

Put all of these ingredients in your crock pot. Stir well. Cook on low for four to five hours. Serve with grated Monterey Jack cheese and sour cream.

I took this recipe from the Aegis Women's Club cookbook from our area and changed a few things to make it a crock pot recipe. Once you have all the ingredients, it couldn't be any easier or more delicious. I'm making a pot tonight!

Prayer Calendar

Almost everyone gets a new pocket calendar from the bank or some other business before the new year begins. Instead of throwing it away or not using it, take a few minutes to jot down names of family, friends, children, work associates, church leaders, etc. and their birthdates. Keep the calendar with your Bible or daily quiet time reading material, and take a moment to pray for any person marked in your calendar on their birthday. If it is someone you normally send a card or contact on their birthday, be sure to let them know they were prayed for that day. Like the "Bag of Compliments" mentioned above, this is the kind of gift that can encourage someone who may need it very badly. You never know what someone is going through.

Well, that's it for today. I have a good date for tomorrow's post, and since it will be New Year's Day, I probably should reconsider my decision about New Year's Resolutions... Ummm. Nope, I don't think so!

Have a great day, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.