southern holiday life 2011
DESCRIPTION
Southern Holiday Life is a special edition of Lake Wedowee Life magazine. It features holiday events, recipes and ideas from the East Alabama & West Georgia areas.TRANSCRIPT
even Lake Wedowee Life
Christmas 2011
Vol. 4 No. 6
Special this Month 10. News to Know: Bike Ride Raises Money and Toys for Area Children 12. How to Cook a Turkey: We-dowee Elementary 2nd graders share cooking tips. 14. Christmas Show: Southern Union Show Choir returns bringing Christ-mas Cheer 21. Elf Magic: Santa’s Elves Visit Spreading Fun and Cheer 24. Pretty Paper: How to package your Christmas Gifts 26. Christmas Road Trip: 12 trips to take with family 28. DIY Christmas: Decorating Ideas for this Holiday Season 40. Christmas Joy: The Joy of Christ-mas 42. Holiday Recipes: Readers share some of their favorite foods 44. Photography Tips: Holiday Pho-tography ideas 46. Market Place: Gifts for Christmas that are available locally
Monthly Features 7. Enjoy Life! - Letter from the Editor 8. Southern Holiday Life at a Glance 18. Simply Fabulous 36. Creative Crafting 38. Charley’s Treasures 50. Facebook Top 10
On the Cover
Brayden Terrell, Olivia Toland and Riley Gooden came to the RE/MAX Lakefront offices for our Christmas photo shoot. Olivia and Riley had entered the Living the Lake Wedowee Life Model Search earlier this year. Annabelle, the Elf Magic Elf, didn’t want to miss out on the fun ei-ther and made a special trip south for the occasion.
Lake Wedowee Life magazine is published six times a year and available around the Lake Wedowee area which includes Randolph and Clay Counties in Alabama as well as parts of West Georgia. Paid mail subscriptions are available for $18 a year. All content in this publication is protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, or otherwise published without the prior written permission of Neighborhood Publishing.
© 2008 Neighborhood Publishing
contributing writers Darlene Bailey
Cade Farris
Charley Norton
General Manager LEISEL CALDWELL
Editor KELLY CALDWELL
[email protected] (256) 276-7959
Writer AMANDA CAUSEY
Advertising Sales LAVOY CALDWELL
[email protected] (334) 863-0737
Lake Wedowee Life 877.959.LAKE (5253)
18285 Highway 431 � Wedowee, AL www.LakeWedoweeLife.net
Spreading Joy at Christmas is one of my favorite things to do. It comes in a variety of ways big and small.
It can be the kind gesture of over-tipping a waitress for great service or hosting a Christmas party for your friends and family. Whatever brings you joy at Christmas, cherish it and pass it on.
In that respect my parents and I decided to share some of our Christmas Joy memories from over the years.
From my dad, Lavoy Caldwell… “Christmas joy comes in many forms and from many different directions. From children beg-
ging to open one gift before going to grandmother’s house (just one, please daddy, just one); the smell of freshly baked turkey and dressing at grandmother’s house; the wrinkling of brightly wrapped gifts beneath the tree ; sleepy eyed little girls stumbling into the den on Christmas morn-ing; watching the snow fall for the first time on Christmas Day (last year); all of that is Christmas joy. Of course the most joyous thing that ever happened on Christmas Day occurred about 2011 years ago in a little town called Bethlehem. Thank you God for loving us.”
From my mom, Leisel Caldwell... “Christmas has always been a big celebration at my house, even as a child my parents made
Christmas very special for us. I have many wonderful memories. I really don't remember many of the gifts that I gave or got but what I remember is the anticipation and excitement that I felt. The gifts I do remember where those that were simple and personal such as the homemade Christmas cookies mailed to our house each year from a family friend.
"My Joy" also comes from giving the unexpected or unusual gift, planning fun parties and just being silly. Examples of this include a pottery wheel for Kelly when she was 18, putting all the Christmas gifts in trash bags instead of wrapping paper, baking and decorating Christmas cookies with my Grandsons or this year's Glass Family get together which will include a version of "Minute to Win It". I hope each of you will find unexpected Joy this Christmas season.“
I have several Christmas Joys from my life, but I believe that my favorite come from when I have given the “perfect” gift. I know it’s the perfect gift when I have made the recipient show emotion. Two years ago I did that (even though the gift wasn’t from me) for my sister and brother-in-law. When my nephew, Luke, was younger, he would come up with his own phrases for things. Instead of I forgot, he would say “I fuzzy got” or he would say “Off the change” instead of off the chain. Well two years ago, I helped my mom create posters with these two sayings. She kept one and gave the other to Randall for Christmas.
Well, needless to say Randall was speechless when he opened his present. (He got “Off the change,” and my mom kept “I fuzzy got”) However, after Randall opened his gift, my mom told of the other poster. Teary-eyed my sister immediately exclaimed “I want ‘I fuzzy got’ too!” So, you see that old saying about “it’s the thought that counts” is really true. When you take the time to give a gift, make sure it’s from the heart!
FromThe Caldwells Merry Christmas!
Christmas Joy Comes in Many Forms
Southern Holiday Life 7
Upcoming Local Events
November 3rd-5th Parker House Antiques Open House
Wedowee
November 11th-13th H & M Drugs Christmas Open House
Wedowee
November 12th Ashland Pharmacy Open House
Ashland
November 12th Midway Treasure’s Open House
Ashland
November 18th Carrollton Open House on the Square
Carrollton
November 19th Pilot Club Christmas For Kids Bike Ride
Lakeside Marina-Wedowee
November 29th - December 2 SUSCC Christmas Show
Wadley Tickets on Sale Now
December 1st Ashland @ 6:00 pm Carrollton @ 5:30 pm
December 3rd Wedowee TBD
December 6th Lineville @ 6:00 pm
December 8th Bowdon @ 4:30 pm
December 12th Roanoke TBD
Woodland @ 2:00 pm
Every year on Christmas Eve, The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), follows Santa Claus as he leaves the North Pole and delivers presents to children around the world. “NORAD Tracks Santa," which has existed since 1955, Be sure that you are in bed asleep before he gets close to your town so that he does not miss your house…..or have to make a side trip out of his carefully planned destination route!
Don’t forget to track Santa’s whereabouts on Christmas Eve at www.noradsanta.org!
Lake Wedowee Life 9
Spreading joy during the Christ-mas season comes in a variety of ways, preparing special treats for coworkers or helping those less fortunate. Steve Calhoun with the help from friends has done the latter for nine years and this year is no dif-ferent.
“Ten years ago we started having a motorcycle enthusi-asts dinner and some people in the group wanted to do something to give back. That's how we started the Department of Human Resources Toy Ride,” Calhoun said.
This year's ride, slated for Nov. 19, will mark the 10th anni-versary of the toy ride.
“It has changed over the years in a lot of ways, but it is still about giving back to the children of this area that might not have Christmas presents otherwise.”
Three years into the toy ride, it became part of the Roanoke Pilot Club's Toy for Tots drive and it
has also seen different locations over the years.
“We started this thing at Lake-side in 2001 and since 2008 we
have been back there,” Calhoun said. “The people there have been a great help in pulling it off every year.”
Registration for the event be-
gins at 10 a.m. and the cost is $20 per rider and $10 per rider or a gift for a boy or girl. “For the last three years, we have been able to raise about $2,000 each year,” Calhoun said. “We still get a lot of toys but the Pilot Club helps children of all ages and sometimes it is good to raise the money too because that way the vol-unteers can go buy the toys for more age groups.”
The ride usually begins around 11:30 a.m. and the trip is about 50 miles.
“We will do a shorter trip this year, because it is kind of difficult to navigate 100 motorcycles on a leisurely ride,” Calhoun said.
Non-bike riders are encour-aged to participate as well.
“We always have people come support the cause that don’t ride motorcycles,” Calhoun said “We welcome everyone to partici-pate.”
News to Know by Kelly Caldwell
The Toys for Tots Bike Ride will be November 19 at Lakeside. Registration begins at 10 a.m.
Bike Ride Spreads Christmas Cheer
12 Southern Holiday Life
How to Cook a Turkey
The way my daddy cooks a turkey. He adds some kind of salt and some pepper salt and some pepper juice. And some times he adds some barbeque sause. Than he adds some more salt and more pepper salt and some more pepper juice. Logan Barrett Mrs. O’Rear Class
First my mother would get a turkey from the store. Next she would heat it up for 60 seconds and put peper on it. Then she would put pilgrims around it and pertend lit-tle turkey’s around the ta-ble and that is how you make a turkey for thanks-giving. Lauren Farris Mrs. Green’s Class
How to cook a turkey. First I buy a turkey and then I wash it off and next you put it in a pan and you start the timer for 20 hours and 4 minutes and then you put it in the oven and then its done you sit at the table. Morgan Knight Mrs. Simpson’s Class
We asked the second grade classes at Wedowee Elementary School to tell us how they would cook a turkey. We picked one winner out of each class to print here. All the entries were great
and we hope you enjoy!
Southern Holiday Life 13
And thanks for a And thanks for a And thanks for a And thanks for a
prosperous 2011! prosperous 2011! prosperous 2011! prosperous 2011!
20755 Hwy 431, Suite 1 Wedowee, AL 36278
Each office independently owned and operated.
For all your real estate needs on Lake Wedowee and surrounding
areas please give us a call.
There is a reason nobody sells more then RE/MAX!There is a reason nobody sells more then RE/MAX!There is a reason nobody sells more then RE/MAX!There is a reason nobody sells more then RE/MAX!
14 Southern Holiday Life
Southern Union State Community College wel-comes in the Christmas Holiday sea-son once again with its an-nual Southern Union Sound Christmas Show.
“It’s really a special pro-duction that so many of the people in the community look forward to each and every year,” Steve Spratlin, Associate Dean of Instruc-tional Programs and Fine Arts De-partment chair said. “The group does a fantastic job pulling it all together.”
The Southern Union Sound will perform the two hour show nightly beginning November 29 through Decem-ber 2.
The Southern Union Sound is under the direction of Ann Caldwell who will celebrate her 36th Christmas Show this sea-son.
“The mes-sage is al-ways the same, we just try to deliver it in different ways,” Caldwell said. “Our show is about cele-brating the birth of Jesus Christ and while there may be secular music in the pro-gram, the overall theme is
very evident.” The show is di-vided into two parts, and fea-tures numerous costume changes as well as featuring the Southern Union dancers. “There is one number where all the Southern Union dancers are featured,” Spratlin said.
Twenty-one dancers will be on stage during Christmas Toys on Parade while Kaely Perry
News to Know by Kelly Caldwell
The Southern union Show Choir Christmas Show is a great way to welcome in the holiday season. It celebrates all things Christmas in an entertaining
way. Tickets are $5 and must be purchased in advance.
Continued on Page 17
Southern Holiday Life 17
and Alex Chavis will provide the vocals. This year’s show also pays tribute to the
troops. “Our first half finale is celebrating our soldiers
who may not be able to make it home for Christ-mas,” Caldwell said. “They are the reason we are able to celebrate Christmas and we wanted to say thank you for that.”
After intermission, however, the tone of the show changes and reflects the religious aspects of the holiday.
“The real reason we have Christmas is because of the birth of the Christ child,” Caldwell said. “And, we embrace that in the second part of the show complete with a nativity scene. We ap-proach it a differently each year but the message is really clear. We have costume changes, song changes and different music, but its always about celebrating the birth of Baby Jesus.”
The show will be narrated by Southern Union Show Choir alum and former Miss Alabama Jamie Langley.
“We are so excited to have her return,” Cald-well said. “She has gone on to represent Southern Union so well and its always fun to welcome a former student back home.”
Sonya Fincher McCord is choreographing the show and Shawn Lockwood is the technical direc-tor.
“We all work so well together and it wouldn't be the same show without them,” Caldwell said.
“We hope to have a good crowd and have had sell out shows in the past,” Caldwell said. “We have a tremendous amount of talent that will be performing this year and look forward to helping the community embrace the Christmas spirit.”
Tickets for the concert are $5 and must be pur-chased in advance from the Southern Union Busi-ness Office or call Rita Brown. 256.395.2211.
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C hurch and family gathering, work, club parties and everything in between...Whew makes you tired just thinking about it! It's that time of year when we are all running from one place to the other. If your calendar is like mine there is somewhere to be every weekend from now until after New Year's.
We all know that around our neck of the woods if there is a gathering----there WILL be food! That's just the way we do things. Although, holiday activities are many, work and family still need attention as well. So here is a recipe for your busy schedule that can be en-joyed as a quick fix at home or you can take to one of your many events. Hope you enjoy!!! Glass Slipper Events 256.449.2946
Lake Wedowee Life 19
**Remove rolls from foil pan and slice cross-way's making a top and bottom. Lay tops aside. Return bottoms to pan. Peel and slice onion into strips and sauté in 1 tablespoon oil. Spread a generous amount of mustard on roll bottoms. Layer with ham then cheese ending with onions on bread bottoms. Preheat oven to 350. Return bread tops and spread with butter. Bake until cheese is melted and heated throughout. (12-15 minutes) Let stand about 5 min. and cut accord-ingly. If eating at home cut larger portions and if taking away cut in the indented sections to serve more. **Bake in foil pan
Ham Roll Sandwiches
Simply Fabulous Story by Darlene Bailey Photo by Kelly Caldwell
1 pkg. sandwich ham 1 pkg. Brown & serve rolls 1 pkg. Sliced Swiss
cheese 1 sm. onion mustard butter
Lake Wedowee Life 21
A couple of weeks ago Lake We-dowee Life received a surprise. We came into the office and noticed a small vel-vet bag with a poem. When we opened the bag there was a cute little Elf named Annabelle inside. According to her poem she is a magic elf from the North Pole. She wanted to visit with us for a couple of weeks so that we could let all of our readers know about her and her pals. Over the past
couple of weeks she has gotten into some mischief! Appar-ently Annabelle and her Elf friends cause quite a ruckus in the households they visit before Christmas. Over fifty years ago, Elves
made their debut in the childhood home of Elf Magic’s Chief Elf Offi-cer (CEO) Piper Worthington. Elves sent by Santa himself magi-cally appeared in her home when she and her sister, Anita, were fast asleep. For weeks, they would find these playful Elves hiding in a different spot each morning when they awoke. As kind as they were adventurous, the Elves be-
gan helping the sisters with daily chores and leaving them personal-ized notes, imparting important lessons about responsibility and selflessness. Elf Magic’s “Timeless
Christmas Tradition” begins with a child writing a letter to Santa Claus requesting an Elf Magic
friend to visit through the Christ-mas season. Before going to bed, the child will place the Elf’s favorite snack of crackers and ice water on the kitchen counter to lure the Elf. Why crackers and ice wa-ter, you ask? Be-cause Elves’ favorite snack is a reminder of their snowy home – the ice wa-ter is melting North Pole Snowflakes and the crackers sound like crunching snow! Magically, an individually named, 10-inch plush Elf appears at the child’s home be-tween Thanksgiving and the days lead-ing up to Christmas
… once the Elf has finished all of his or her work at the North Pole. Each Elf Magic Elf comes
with a poem and tips that explain the tradition, along with magical North Pole Snowflakes, which the child sprinkles on the Elf each night to bring him or her to life. While the family is asleep, the Elf is wide awake and ready to play! This is the time when the Elf goes on all types of adventurous Elfca-pades from cookie baking, gift
News to Know Story by Amanda Causey
wrapping and hiding in freezers (because the Elves love the frosty tempera-ture!).
After a night of em-barking on playful ad-ventures, the Elf hides for the child to find the next morning – maybe under a pile of unrolled toilet pa-per or even on the blade of a ceiling fan! If the fan is on high, the Elf might just “fly” through the air.
Elves are very crea-tive and love to have fun! During the day, they can tag along on all the child's daily adventures from gaz-ing at Christmas lights, vis-iting the child's school, go-ing shopping or even orga-nizing a sleepover "Elf par-ties!” Some Elves even pick a weekly Bible verse the family can discuss and memorize. There is no limit to the joy Elf Magic can bring! The Elves can be a spir-ited group. While some of the Elves have mischievous streaks
from time to time, Santa knows which Elf will be the best fit for each fam-ily. So whether a family wants ex-citement or simply compan-ionship
from their Elf, Santa will make sure the right Elf arrives at that home. Elves return to the North Pole with Santa on Christmas Eve to help deliver toys around the world; but don’t fret, as the Elves will return again next Christmas to create more fun-filled memories. Elf Magic Elves are so endearing, they become the child’s best friend! Because of this, Elves have been known to show up for brief visits throughout the year as a surprise for special events, like birthdays, the first day of school or even on fam-ily vacations! For more information on the Elf Magic tradition, visit Santa's Favorite Website:
www.Elf-Magic.com.
You’ve found the perfect gift but it is not quite complete. Look-ing for a way to add a little some-thing extra to your gifts this year? Get creative with your wrapping and make each gift extra special, give it a per-sonalized touch with unconventional wrapping techniques. Wrapping pa-
per is especially im-portant at Christmas, when presents some-times sit under the tree for several weeks before being opened. Beautiful gift-
wrapping might seem difficult to achieve, but many simple tricks can make any present look more alluring. Before you get started on your gift wrap session be sure you plan ahead and gather all your supplies. For the gifts pictured I used brown craft paper, white butcher paper, sheet music, a potato chip can, scrapbook paper, and miscellane-ous embellishments. For the holi-day treat packages (which will be one of the last gifts you wrap) I used empty coffee containers, a potato chip can, scrapbook paper, and a tumbler. Customize each gift’s packaging to the personality of it’s recipient. Another tip to try is to have the packaging go along with the gift itself. The tire marked wrapping paper with racecar adornment is the perfect gift wrap idea for a racetrack or vehicle ac-cessories. Many household items can be
recycled to make beautiful gift wrap. An old map and a broken
toy compass made the perfect wrap for a GPS, and for the fisher-man in the fam-ily, you can incor-porate part of the “gift” into the name tag or add as a trimming. A potato chip can wrapped in scrapbook paper makes a creative container for any
Christmas 2011 by Amanda Causey
So you have finished your holiday gift list (you checked it twice). Make sure the thoughtfulness of your gift is not lost in boring Christmas wrap.
type of small gift, or for homemade treats. Empty coffee cans can be decorated using wrapping paper scraps or with decorative papers. One major coffee distributor has pre-made templates on their web-site for each holiday occasion that will cover it’s labels. Before I throw out an incom-
plete game board or any type of toy sets I hang onto the small pieces to use as decoration for a
later time. You never know when they will come in handy (like they did in my Creative Crafting pro-ject!). Personalizing your gift pres-entation helps make the present more memorable and special. Monogrammed ornaments or key chains can also double as a gift tag. Another tip when it comes to
gift packaging is wrapping in an item that can be used again at a later date. Our Magic Elf, Anna-
belle, happens to love peppermints. We package some for her in a plastic tumbler that will be perfect for drinking hot chocolate. We used scrapbook pa-per to print ‘Happy Holidays’ from the computer, and at-tached it to the cup with adhesive. We created cones from pretty Christmas papers, punched two holes for string and created an or-namental gift. Fill with your favorite holiday snack and
hang on your tree until it is time to give your gift. One thing to remember during
your Christmas present exchange is to be mindful of our environment. Use recycled wrapping paper or items that would typically be con-sidered trash to “dress up” your gifts. Also save as many “wastes” from this Christmas so you can use them for the next Christmas season. Merry Christmas and Happy
Wrapping!
This information is deemed to be correct but is not guaranteed.
Christmas Road Trip
Locations on the map are approximate, for directions to events, contact the information provided.
Christmas Road Trip
Framed “Joy” Kelly Caldwell
This looks a lot more difficult as a finished project. First I began by hitting the local craft store and picking up wooden letters, paint, glitter and scrapbook pa-per. (I already had frames at home).
I actually found glit-ter craft paint while I was shopping so I de-cided to give it a try. I painted the letters with a thick coat of paint and before it dried I sprinkled the other glitter on top of it. (Make sure you paint the edges of the letters because it will show.)
After that dried, I positioned the letters on the scrapbook paper
and marked it with a pencil.( It helps you center the letters) Then, I got out my glue gun and glued the letters to the paper. My last step was to frame it. Again I had 12x12 frames already and re-moved the glass from each one.
I like sparkly when it comes to
Christmas decorations but the sky is the limit on this project. There are so many possibilities with this craft and I know I will be doing this again… and if you plan it right a rather inexpensive one. (I did this project for less than $10 per letter including the frames.)
Holiday decorating is a great opportunity for us to explore our “crafty” side. Here are a few projects you could use in your
home for years to come. Merry Christmas!
Santa Key Amanda Causey
How does Santa get in a home or apartment with no chim-ney? He needs a magic key!
At our house we do not have a fireplace for Santa to come down the chimney, and we can’t just leave the door unlocked! For the past 5 years I have hung the Santa Key that I made out-side the front door on Christmas Eve so that Santa can get into the house and deliver his gifts. If you have a chimney, but are worried that Santa might not be able easily fit without getting stuck, this would also be a good alternative. I have designed a printable exclusively for Southern Holiday Life. You can get it at www.SouthernHolidayLife.com . Enjoy!
Joy Yard Art Lavoy Caldwell
You need access to certain tools to do this project.
First, the girls picked out a font they liked on the com-puter and printed the letters on transparency film.
Then, they used freezer paper and an overhead pro-jector to get a template ready for me.
I took over from there. I went to Wedowee Build-
ing Supplies and picked up a two sheets of plywood. Then I used that template to cut the letters out with a Roto-Zip Saw.
After that, I went back to the Building Supply to get sand paper and say Roll Tide to Joe and the boys.
I smoothed it down with the sand paper. I needed a juice break and went back to the Wedowee Building Sup-plies. I also picked up spray paint while I was there.
The girls and I tossed around different ideas on how to decorate these letters, but simple won out for this purpose. I sprayed painted the letters with outdoor spray paint alternating the colors.
Now, we used these inside with the kids during the cover shoot but when it gets closer to Christmas, we will move them outdoors.
I will attach to the back of each letter a support system and then add a spotlight in front of them so we can all enjoy our “Joy” this Christ-mas season.
But, that will require a couple of more trips to the Building Supply before I can finish it. ROLL TIDE JOE!
Wrap it up... Off the Wall and On the
Wall Leisel Caldwell
Give the entire room a festive feel by wrapping up your art work like Christmas packages. It is an
inexpensive idea with lots of punch. I like to pick out 3 or 4 coordinating wrapping papers for my Christmas wrapping and then carry the theme from under the tree to the walls with the wrapped packages and
bows.
Coat Rack - Stockings
Leisel Caldwell Are you lacking a
fireplace mantle or other good place to hang your Christmas stockings? We ex-perienced this prob-lem a few years ago when we moved into a house without a fireplace. Christmas stockings are a big deal at our house even as adults. It is our tradition to put small gifts and treats in each others stock-ings up until Christ-
mas Day. Our stockings become full and heavy and need a substantial way to be hung. After considering a few other ideas we came up with the idea of a coat rack. Lavoy got it built just in time for Christmas 3 years ago. It holds our family's 8 stockings with room for more. It is quite festive with just the stockings but can be further embellished with greenery, lights
and ribbons.
Christmas Card Book Amanda Causey
Have you been wondering what in the world you're going to do with all the Christmas cards that you get from friends and family each year? Not really wanting to throw them away, but also not wanting the hassle of scrap-booking them? Here is what I do
with my beloved Christmas cards. I create yearly books that I put out as decoration dur-ing the holidays. Simply take your hole punch and line the card up so that it punches just the TWO holes evenly on the card. (Three holes will make it harder to open.) Then get some clasping metal binder, and you have yourself a beautiful coffee table adornment!
You will be able to look back over the years and enjoy flipping through to read what holiday wishes your loved ones sent. Easy, unique and eco-friendly.
If you have any Do-it-yourself tips and tricks for this Christmas season, please share them with us. You can email them to [email protected] or post them on our facebook.com fan page. Face-
book.com/lakewedoweelife. We love to see pictures of your crafts too! And, we
may include them in next year’s Southern Holiday Life! Merry Christmas and Happy Crafting!
Southern Holiday Life 35
Creative Crafting Christmastime always brings joy to my heart.
There is no better way to get into the Christmas spirit than to create handmade works of art to give as a
gift or to decorate your home. When it’s too cold to go out-side and play, indoor activities are the best way to spend
time with the family and keep the magic of Christmas alive for children of all ages.
I have made three crafts that are easy and fun for every-one! For a more detailed version of these crafts and for
more holiday craft ideas visit www.SouthernHolidayLife.com
By Amanda Causey
Holiday Wreath Alternative Sometimes you want to try something differ-
ent...so here is a great idea for your door. Instead of the traditional Christmas wreath, try this burlap sac with a live spruce sapling. After the holidays are over you can plant it in the yard. Step by step instructions to make the burlap sac are available
online.
Frosted Luminaries I have seen several different crafts using Epsom salts
to embellish holiday décor. I wanted to give it a try and here is what the result was. I got the glassware from the thrift store for a quarter each. Roll adhesive covered glass into colored Epsom salts and allow them to dry. Coat with gloss sealer several times. Add your candles
and enjoy!
Eco-Friendly Snow Globe Ornament This winter wonderland ornament has the appeal of
a snow globe and terrarium, but is made simpler for children. You can buy the snow at your local craft store, or cut up plastic grocery bags for the “greener” route. I have put my environment loving spin on this project. Reuse old toys/Christmas ornaments for the inside pieces. Use clear solo cups as the top, and scalloped
edge cardstock on the bottom. Write crafter’s name and date on the bottom of the cardstock .
What do you get someone who has everything? Personally, I don’t know because I don’t know anyone who can honestly say they have eve-rything. There is always something, if not it's just one thing, that every-one wants and doesn’t have. But wanting something you don’t have is half the fun, if not more fun. I have probably had more fun imagining what I’d do with something I didn’t have than I probably would have had if I had it.
When I was 5 ½ years old, I wanted an electric car. I guess that’s the first year that I remem-ber wanting something so specifi-cally that it justified a place in the “don’t forget” file in my head. I dreamed about it almost every night. “What a car it would be” I remember thinking. I would park it by my bed and in the morning I would just roll over into it and drive it to the kitchen where mom would bring me my breakfast on a tray and I would drive over to the TV and watch cartoons while I ate. It would be red with a white stripe and everyone would know it was me when I rode by because no one else would have one like it. I would help mom in the yard hauling leaves and branches to the burn pile and would never let my sister ride in it. On nice days I would ride over to the neighbors
house and let them take turns while I rode them around the yard. It would be awesome!
But Christmas came and there was no car under the tree and I really can’t remember being that disappointed. Maybe I wasn’t that
broken up about it because I had had so much fun with the car in my imagination that I was pretty tired of playing with it by the time Christmas came along. I did, how-ever, get my first bike that year. It was a Cheetah Slick and one of the coolest bikes of all time. It was yellow and had a wide racing slick on the back and if I was awake, I was either on it or in trouble for being on it when or where I shouldn’t be. It was my best friend next to the three
legged cow that stayed in the pas-ture next to our house that used to come to the fence when I called and ate grass from my hand. Looking back, I’m really glad I got the bike instead of the car because I think it would be impossible for the car to live up to my expectations where the bike wasn’t expected and had nothing
to live up to. Christmas brings out those visions of better things and better times that gives us all little pieces of joy and happiness if only in our mind and if only make be-lieve. But we have to remember that everything imagined is al-ways perfect but not always real-istic. We have all read or heard about those people that have won the lottery and in a short time, be-come friendless and penniless. But when I imagine winning, it’s al-ways good and there is never a downside unless I try to look at it realistically, which is something I try not to do. And why should I? Isn’t that the point of a dream or a wish?
Making your dreams come true is great but for most of us, just dreaming is good too. I don’t think I would be happy if all of my dreams came true tomorrow anyway. I mean, it would be like reaching the end of the road be-fore running out of gas or even wanting to stop. In this day and
Imagine That!
Charley’s Treasures by Charley Norton
time, we can’t all expect to get exactly what we want. But maybe we can imagine it and be thankful for what we have. With that, I think I’ll get into my Nis-san GTR and speed down the Autobahn while being chased by two German cops and the staff from Top Gear.
Charley Norton is co-owner of Norton’s Flooring, a
company started by his mother and father in 1976. Nor-ton’s Flooring products are in countless homes on Lake
Wedowee and throughout the county.
The There’s
something bitter-sweet about bub-bles. In the eyes of a child, bubble-blowing is nothing short of magic. You dip your wand into a bottle, blow through the little plastic cir-cle, and voila…bubbles of all sizes pour forth to sparkle in the sunlight and fly on the wind. Every bubble magician knows the joy is multiplied when you have with you a certified bubble catcher. This skilled professional chases after the bubbles to cap-ture them in hand, only to dis-cover the bitter truth—bubbles pop. Nevertheless, the cycle is re-peated again and again. Dip, blow, catch, pop. Dip, blow, catch, pop. This goes on until ei-ther boredom sets in or the magic bubble potion runs dry.
Searching for joy has much in common with blowing bubbles. We think we have it in hand, only to have it pop before our very eyes. Or we think we have discov-ered it within, but our well of joy somehow runs dry. Joy can be hard to come by. Part of the rea-son is that joy is often confused with happiness. Happiness can come and go, but joy remains con-stant through all of life’s ups and downs. Joy is hard to come by as well because it is not easily found or kept. All of us can remember receiving a Christmas present and feeling joyful, but in a few weeks,
that feeling wore off. It is impossible for true joy to be found in
material things because those things do not last.
We get much closer to real joy when we spend time with fam-
ily during the Christmas season. Year after year, we experience feelings of love and warmth well-ing up inside of us when all the
family gets together. There is much more lasting joy in relation-ships than in material posses-sions. But the sad reality is that our life on this earth will eventu-ally come to an end. For this rea-son, Christmas for many brings sadness as we remember our loved ones who are no longer sharing Christmas with us. Hu-man relationships are wonderful, but they cannot provide us with ultimate joy because those rela-tionships are ultimately severed by death.
What then is the source of true joy? The Christmas story found in Luke Chapter 2 tells us. The Bible says, “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord ap-peared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy
that will be for all the people. To-day in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:8-11, NIV) Great joy for all people is found in the gift of Jesus Christ, the Sav-ior. Death cannot sever the joy of a personal relationship with Jesus because Jesus conquered death through His resurrection from the grave.
Isaac Watts was an eighteenth century hymn writer, and he un-derstood the joy that Jesus makes available to all who will receive him. Many Americans sing his lyrics every December:
Joy to the world! The Lord is come; Let earth receive her king; Let every heart prepare Him
room, And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing, And heaven, and heaven, nature
sing. This Christmas, may your
heart prepare Him room, so the King can take His rightful throne in your life. And then you will sing with joy everlasting, a well-spring of joy that will never run dry. (John 4:13-14)
With Christmas Joy, Cade Farris
Cade Farris became the new pastor of First Baptist We-
dowee in August of this year. He can be reached at
[email protected] or 256-357-2139
Christmas Joy by Cade Farris
of Christmas
40 Southern Holiday Life
Salty Snack Crax Kathy Avery
2 boxes of 11 oz Sunshine Oyster Crackers 1 1/2 cups salad oil 2 tsp dill weed 1 pkg Original Ranch Dressing
mix (dry) 1.5 tbsps lemon pepper Mix all ingredients, except crackers
in a large missing bowl. Toss in crack-ers until all oil is absorbed. Put in tight container for 24 hours and serve. Can be frozen for 6-8 weeks and served after thawing.
Fresh Yellow Squash Casserole
Kathy Avery
Grease 2.5 quart casserole dish. 1.5 lb grated yellow squash Layered witch crushed saltines,
salt & pepper to taste, grated onion to taste and dot each layer with butter. Over each layer pour a mixture of beaten eggs (2) and 2 cups milk, using about 1/3 of mixture on each layer. Top casserole with crushed saltines and butter- last 10 to 15 min cooking. Bake at 350 degrees about 1 hour
and 10 min. The saltines absorb lots of liquid
before baking, I test for liquid by mashing top layer with a fork and milk should seep to just below surface of fork.
Beef Stew Recipe Naomi Wreyford
2-3 Lbs. Beef Roast cut in bite size pieces 1 onion Chopped Potatoes Carrots Cabbage Okra Corn Green Beans Diced Tomatoes Brown Beef and onion in large
stock pot. Add just enough water to cover meat. Simmer 2-3 hours add-ing water as needed until meat is very tender. Add diced potatoes & carrots, remainder of vegetables (add any veggies of your choice) Season to your taste. Cook until all veggies are tender.
Blueberry Salad Linda Stone
1 can (16 oz) blueberries 1 can (6.5 oz) crushed pineapple 2 pkg (3 oz) blackberry gelatin or
black raspberry, or black cherry 2 cups water Dissolve gelatin in 2 cups of boil-
ing water. Drain juice from blueber-ries & pineapple. Use all the pineap-ple juice add enough blueberry juice to make it one cup. Add juice to gelatin. Discard extra juice. Add drained fruit and congeal.
Topping: 1 oz pkg Cream cheese 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tsp Vanilla Mix together and put on top of
the gelatin. Sprinkle with chopped nuts.
White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge
Chere Toland
1-1/2 teaspoons plus 1/4 cup butter, softened, divided 2 cups sugar 1/2 cup sour cream 12 ounces white baking choco-
late, chopped 1 jar (7 ounces) marshmallow
creme 1/2 cup crushed peppermint
candy 1/2 tsp peppermint extract Line a 9-in. square pan with foil.
Grease the foil with 1-1/2 teaspoons butter; set aside. In a large heavy saucepan, com-
bine the sugar, sour cream and re-maining butter. Cook and stir over medium heat until sugar is dis-solved. Bring to a rapid boil; cook and stir until a candy thermometer reads 234° (soft-ball stage), about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in white chocolate and marshmal-low creme until melted. Fold in peppermint candy and extract. Pour into prepared pan. Chill until firm. Using foil, lift fudge out of pan.
Gently peel off foil; cut fudge into 1-in. squares. Store in the refrigera-tor.
Most Christmas gatherings require food, so we asked our readers to share their favorite recipes for this time of year. We hope you enjoy!
Recipes
The problem with most pho-tos taken during the holidays or other special celebrations is that they don’t capture the special feeling of the season or event. Here is a photo check-list, along with five tips to help you photograph your holiday season.
Don't be afraid to get up close. Al-most every digital camera has a Magnify or Macro button that lets you get close and create a much more interesting photo. There's nothing wrong with pictures that are posed, but you can
create variety by taking candid shots of family and at social gather-ings. Capture people while they’re engaged in conversation or as they’re opening a gift. Keep your
camera batteries
charged up and your camera nearby so you can catch spontaneous moments. Try to tell a story. Don’t just photograph the opening of the gifts. Photograph the process of selecting the gifts, wrapping them, and the mess that is left over after they are opened. This process is called photojournalism and has been growing in popularity in pho-tography over the years. If you are shooting indoors during the day, make your por-traits with your subjects standing near a window or door instead of
relying on the flash. The flash can cause red eye and give
your subject a harsh appear-ance. Looking at rows of people staring at the cam-era and smiling at you head-on can be a bit boring. If you want to take a photo of your family or friends, simply changing the angle and looking at a famil-iar scene from a new perspective can give it a brand new look.
To download and print a copy of this checklist please visit
www.SouthernHolidayLife.com
by Amanda Causey
Place
Don’t forget your pet this Christ-mas. Wedowee Marine has lifejack-ets for your four-legged friends.
Sheppard’s Jewelry offers Lennox Christmas Ornaments and china.
Ashland Pharmacy offers great Christmas serving pieces.
Lakeside Marina has great decorative item for your lake house. Take your wine in style with these styl-
ish carriers from Midway Treasures.
Sock Monkeys are available at H&M Drugs.
Eco-bags are a big hit this year and you can get yours at The Stuff Store. They can also be personalized
Lake Wedowee Life really loves to support local businesses and we encourage you to do the same this Christmas season. Our advertisers of-fer great gifts for the whole family and here is just a sampling… Visit the stores and you will be impressed with the unique treasures that are available in the Lake Wedowee area! Merry Christmas & Happy Shopping!
Lakeside Marina has gifts for your favorite fisherman.
These barrettes available at Sheppard’s Jewelry can accent in a variety of ways.
Plan for next year with a wakeboard from Wedowee Ma-rine which also has all your lake fun needs.
Add a little kick to your favorite wine or spar-kling juice with these mixes available at Midway Treas-ures.
H&M Drugs has a variety of Christmas serving dishes available for that Holiday Party.
Take notes in style with this pewter note holder at The Stuff Store.
Ashland Pharmacy has a variety of picture frames that are surely to please.
To see more of what our local retail advertisers have to of-fer this holiday season, visit our facebook fan page. Www.facebook.com/lakewedoweelife
48 Southern Holiday Life
Index of Advertisers A & E Metal 37
Affordable Tire & Repair 39
AGL 22
Alabama Power 3
Ashland Pharmacy 20
Bank of Wedowee 17
Brian Morris 10
Chad Lee, Attorney At Law 39
Charles Thompson Construction 35
Chris May, Circuit Clerk 10
City Auto Parts 41
Clay Automotive 52
D & S Marine 39
David Cofield, Randolph Co. Sheriff 35
Docks Plus More 23
Dr. Michael Edwards 16
Dukes Jewelry 37
Fiberglass Unlimited 48
First Capital Insurance 41
First State Bank 33
George Diamond, Probate Judge 39
H& M Drugs 23
Halls Propane 6
Joe Lambert Appraisal Services 17
Josh Burns, Revenue Commissioner 23
Kesa Johnston, Attorney at Law 31
Lagrange Women's Health 41
Lakeside Grill 51
Lakeview Auto Service 31
Mac McKinney Properties 45
Main Street Animal Hospital 43
Midway Treasures 16
Norton's Floor Covering 23
Parker House Antiques 41
Perryland Foods 16
RE/MAX Lakefront Grady & Linda Stone 15
RE/MAX Lakefront, Josephine McGuire 20
RE/MAX Lakefront, Kelly and Leisel Caldwell 31
RE/MAX Lakefront 13
Satellite Specialist 29
Scott Evans Automotive Group 2
Scott Hewitt, Attorney at Law 43
Sew Classy 16
Sheppard's Jewelry 15
Sledge Kut and Kurl 37
SmallTown Bank 48
Southern Home Comfort 16
Southern Union State Community College 41
State Farm Insurance 37
Steele Chiropractic 45
Summit Storage 45
Superior Gas 48
Tallapoosa River Electric Coop 35
TEC Security 33
The Stuff Store 9
W & M Grocery 19
Wedowee Building Supplies 20
Wedowee Lake and Lands 43
Wedowee Landscape 37
Wedowee Marine 11
Wellborn Cabinet 15
Williamsburg Manor 33
Southern Holiday Life 49
1. A Christmas Story Kesa Johnston Dunn - A Christmas story is my fave because it reminds me so much of the chaos in my parents home at Christmas and how joyous being a child truly is!!!!
Andy Petty - As timeless as a film can be, every generation will discover and fall in love with "A Christmas Story!" It is the most watched Christmas film in America every year and I'm sure the whole family can sit in front of the tube and quote the entire film word-for-word.
Kristi Foster - I LOVE LOVE LOVE "A Christmas Story"...there is no funnier holiday movie that hits so close to home!! That could easily be my fam-ily!!!! LOL!!
2. National Lampoon’s Christ-mas Vacation
Shelley Lowery Rainey - I absolutely love all things Christmas including every movie posted!! Christmas Vaca-tion has to be my fave though because I can literally pull this one out all year long and laugh every time I watch it.
Sharon Lynne - National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation; because it is a "Yule Time Crack Up!" I love the quest for "The Griswald Family Christmas Tree" - blinding the neighbors and
causing a power drain at the local nu-clear power plant I could go on and on....LOL
3. It’s A Wonderful Life Kelly Caldwell - "It's a Wonderful Life" is my favorite because every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings!
4. The Grinch Wendy Franklin - The Grinch is my favorite because I have watched it every year for as far back as I can re-member. It lets me know Christmas is on the way and to remember the real meaning of Christmas LOVE no matter what happens!
5. Home Alone Vera Blank - It is funny, that is the kind of movies we need at Christmas, be-cause a lot of people at this time of the year are sad and don't have family to celebrate the season . Everyone needs something to laugh about.
Beau Causey - Kevin is smarter than Harry and Marv and it's funny when they get hurt.
6. White Christmas Bob Blunt - The thought and feeling that a superior could elicit such concern and compassion was intriguing when I first saw it...That still feels a lot like what Christmas is about.
7. Polar Express Martha Shows Burnett - We watch the Polar Express every year with our grandsons, then we go to ride the Polar Express train. It has become a Christ-mas tradition.
8. Miracle on 34th Street Sharon Browness - Miracle on 34th street !!! The original black and white... it is so innocent and full of the holiday spirit.
9. Miracle in the Wilderness Sandra Meadows - A movie called, "Miracle in the Wilderness.” It stars Kris Kristofferson, and is set in the Old West. it tells the Christmas story from the Native American perspective. His wife is captured, and Kris goes to res-cue her. They tell the story of Christ's birth to the chief. It was on TV many years ago. I would love to see it again.
10. Love Actually Charlene White - Love Actually is my favorite Christmas movie and I have to watch it every year during the holi-days. The movie brings back memories of young love for me, but with a touch of sadness for lost love, unrequited love and friendships. I laugh, cry and sing along with the songs from the movie.
Facebook Fan Top 10 Watching movies with the family is always a must during the holiday season. Laugh-
ing and crying while snuggled under a blanket or in front of a fire with loved ones seems to make the holiday season complete! We asked our Facebook Fans to tell us
their holiday movie and why. Here are our poll results:
To participate in our next poll , or to see other results of this poll be sure to visit www.facebook.com/LakeWedoweeLife.
