I've moved...

So I have decided that I'm not so fond of my name, Creating Sweet Smiles and I'm not really happy with where this blog is going, it feels very restricting to me. I want a blog that is more about my life instead of trying to make things in my blog line up with my life. Because of this, I have moved to RedneckDixieChick.com. Hope to see you there.

Stacy

Foodie Penpals November 2012

So this month I got to send a package to Andra at Counting the Freckles. I sent her a package of green chile stew mix and green chile cornbread mix. I also sent her a bottle of the chipotle barbeque sauce I tried last month and a package of red chile seasoning. She said the cornbread was really good and easy to make, I really hope she liked the rest of her package. I really liked the barbeque sauce so I hope she did too.

I received a package from a reader, Amanda. Due to an emergency, I didn't get my package until today so I haven't had a chance to try anything yet but I'm excited to try everything. Please excuse the pictures, my camera was dead so I had to use Hubby's camera and while it was great for his trip to Mexico and it really is water proof but it doesn't take the best pictures especially now that it gets so dark so early.

  Everything all together

I guess I'll have to break down and use a mix, these look good...

Super cute cupcake papers and picks...

Christmas sprinkles...

Reeses are always a big hit around here...

I think Hubby already claimed this hot cocoa mix...

Hershey-ets or M&Ms...

This super cute story book full of lifesavers...

For December, Lyndsay has decided to do things a little different for Foodie Penpal participants, we will be donating the money we would have spent on our packages and donating it to Sandy victims. You can check out her blog at The Lean Green Bean for more information.

Halloween Cookies

These are the cookies that Nephew and I did for Halloween. He decided he wanted to make ghost cookies. I decided I wanted to make pumpkins. So I found all the halloween cutters I could find and we decorated cookies.

I showed him how to outline and then flood the cookies. He did pretty good. The white and green ghosts he outlined and then flooded.

October Foodie Penpal Reveal

Time for the October Foodie Penpal Reveal!

I sent a package to a reader this month, she is gluten free so I sent her a package of Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour blend, this is what I always use for Nephew's stuff. I also sent her a recipe for Gluten Free Banana Bread that I make for Nephew. I included some local Jalapeno Jelly and a Chipotle Barbecue Sauce (I also bought a bottle of this for myself and it is good!).

I received my package this month from Maeve over at Adventure! With Maeve.

Here is everything that was in my box, I was so excited to open everything, Hubby especially wanted the cotton candy. I had to wait until the next evening when I had some light to take pictures though.

First up, we've got these amazing little cookies. They have lemon thyme and lemon flavoring, they were so amazing, I may just have to try and make some of these.

Next up, a spice mix and hot chocolate mix. I haven't quite been in a hot chocolate mood yet, maybe tonight now that I officially woke up this morning with my first cold of the season :(.

She also sent me this catalog of spices, there are so many different things I want!

There was also this great description of the Boquet Garni spice mix she sent me. I haven't tried it yet but I can't wait to.

And last but not least, some Maple Cotton Candy. This was so good! I don't remember the last time I had cotton candy so it was a treat.

Thank you so much Maeve for the wonderful package.

And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals.  In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. They have determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 

If you’re interested in participating for November, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 

You must submit your information by November 4th as pairings will be emailed on November 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send Lindsay an email and She'll see if she gets enough interest this month!

Bible Study Wednesday #9

It’s Wednesday again, time for another Bible Study Wednesday. I’m trying a new approach; I'm only posting the reading schedule for the week. If there is a lesson or idea that really stands out for me during the week, I'll share that but so far I felt like I was just sharing a synopsis of each chapter. That seemed pretty pointless to me because if you're reading along with me, you know what each chapter was about. I think that just sharing anything important that I glean from my reading will be more productive. If you haven't been keeping up with the Bible Study Wednesday posts, you can find all the posts here.

Wednesday 10/31 Genesis Ch 32

Thursday 11/1 Genesis Ch Ch 33

Friday 11/2 Genesis Ch 34

Saturday 11/3 Genesis Ch 35 & Ch 36

Sunday 11/4 Genesis Ch 37 & Ch 28

Monday 11/5 Genesis Ch 39

Tuesday 11/6 Genesis Ch 40

You may notice that some days have 2 chapters instead of just one. I found that on the weekends I have more time to study so I decided to take advantage of that and read 2 chapters. There will be weeks that won't have 2 chapters on the weekends because of time restraints and there may be weekdays that I increase to 2 chapters based on my time allowances. You can always move a chapter to the weekend if you find that you are unable to read 2 chapters on the weekdays when I can.

I really hope you decide to join me my on my bible study journey, if you do, I would love to hear from you, whether it be in the comments or by email.

Thanks for reading!

Bible Study Wednesday #8

It’s Wednesday again, time for another Bible Study Wednesday. I’m trying a new approach; I'm only posting the reading schedule for the week. If there is a lesson or idea that really stands out for me during the week, I'll share that but so far I feel like I'm just sharing a synopsis of each chapter. That seems pretty pointless to me because if you're reading along with me, you know what each chapter was about. I think that just sharing anything important that I glean from my reading will be more productive. If you haven't been keeping up with the Bible Study Wednesday posts, you can find all the posts here.

Wednesday 10/24 Genesis Ch 23

Thursday 10/25 Genesis Ch 24

Friday 10/26 Genesis Ch 25

Saturday 10/27 Genesis Ch 26 & Ch 27

Sunday 10/28 Genesis Ch 28 & Ch 29

Monday 10/29 Genesis Ch 30

Tuesday 10/30 Genesis Ch 31

You may notice that some days have 2 chapters instead of just one. I found that on the weekends I have more time to study so I decided to take advantage of that and read 2 chapters. There will be weeks that won't have 2 chapters on the weekends because of time restraints and there may be weekdays that I increase to 2 chapters based on my time allowances. You can always move a chapter to the weekend if you find that you are unable to read 2 chapters on the weekdays when I can.

I really hope you decide to join me my on my bible study journey, if you do, I would love to hear from you, whether it be in the comments or by email.

Thanks for reading!

Bible Study Wednesday #7

Okay, here's another late Bible Study Wednesday. I think I'm going to try a different tactic. I'm just going to be posting the reading schedule for the week. If there is a lesson or idea that really stands out for me during the week, I'll share that but so far I feel like I'm just sharing a synopsis of each chapter. That seems pretty pointless to me because if you're reading along with me, you know what each chapter was about. I think that just sharing anything important that I glean from my reading will be more productive. If you haven't been keeping up with the Bible Study Wednesday posts, you can find all the posts here.

Wednesday 10/17 Genesis Ch 14

Thursday 10/18 Genesis Ch 15

Friday 10/19 Genesis Ch 16

Saturday 10/20 Genesis Ch 17 & Ch 18

Sunday 10/21 Genesis Ch 19 & Ch 20

Monday 10/22 Genesis Ch 21

Tuesday 10/23 Genesis Ch 22

You may notice that some days have 2 chapters instead of just one. I found that on the weekends I have more time to study so I decided to take advantage of that and read 2 chapters. There will be weeks that won't have 2 chapters on the weekends because of time restraints and there may be weekdays that I increase to 2 chapters based on my time allowances. You can always move a chapter to the weekend if you find that you are unable to read 2 chapters on the weekdays when I can.

I really hope you decide to join me my on my bible study journey, if you do, I would love to hear from you, whether it be in the comments or by email.

Thanks for reading!

Bible Study Wednesday #6

I know that it has been a few weeks since I posted a Bible Study Wednesday post, I apologize. T/hings were a little crazy and once I realized that I hadn't posted the next scheduled one, I started getting a little overwhelmed but instead of letting that get in my way I just decided to resume where I left off so the thoughts I posted below are from the last post I did a few weeks ago and the reading schedule is just continued on from there. 

I decided to use this as a learning experience. Usually when I start to fail at something, I have a tendency to just give up but instead of giving up, I'm just going to continue on.

If you need to catch up, you can check out the rest of the posts here.

Basically how my bible study works is each Wednesday I will be posting a reading schedule. Each day I will be doing my reading that I have scheduled and journaling about it. I will post a recap of my thoughts on each chapter. I would love to have y'all join me in my scheduled readings and share your thoughts as well. Even if you don't want to share your thoughts, you can just let me know by comment or email that you'll be joining me in the bible study.

The reading schedule from the previous week is in black and my thoughts are in purple.

Wednesday 9/19 Job Ch 26 - Job replies by listing things that God has done that are miraculous. Basically, God is so powerful. We only see the physical manifestations of this - He suspends the earth over nothing - He hangs water in the clouds - If we can see these things that are so awesome, what is he doing that we can't see, that is even more powerful.

Thursday 9/20 Job Ch 27 - Job continues, even though God has denied him the justice Job feels he deserves, he will not speak wickedness or deceit, he will not turn from God. Job will maintain his righteousness and integrity.

Friday 9/21 Job Ch 28 - Job continues on asking where a person would find wisdom. He answers his own question with 'The fear of the Lord - That is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.'

Saturday 9/22 Job Ch 29 - Job continues on, longing for his old life. He longs for the days when God watched over him, when God's light shone upon him, when God was with him. Job says the people showed him respect because he rescued the poor and the fatherless, he put on righteousness as his clothing and justice was his robe and turban. This is a bit of a different picture than his friends painted of him in chapter 22.

Ch 30 - Job continues still, saying how everyone mocks him now, even men younger than him. Young men whose fathers Job had deemed not worthy now mock him. Job feels that because God abandoned him, these people now throw off restraint in Job's presence, they don't care what Job thinks of them anymore.

Sunday 9/23 Job Ch 31 - Job continues saying things like, if I have done wrong, punish me for it. He says, if I had wanted another woman then let my wife go to another man, if I did not share food, clothes or shelter with the needy, let his arms fall off or be broken off at the joint.

Ch 32 - Job's 3 friends have now given up on talking to him and trying to convince him to turn to God and repent so Elihu, son of Barakel the Buzite, decides it is his turn to speak to Job. Elihu has become angry listening to the conversation so far. Elihu begins by recognizing that he is younger than Job and his friends, he says this is why he was holding his tongue, out of respect for his elders. Elihu says, it is not only the old that are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right.

Monday 9/24 Job Ch 33 - Elihu begins speaking to Job. He says that him and Job are the same before God, they are equals (as man) therefore Job should not be afraid of Job and Elihu should not take a heavy hand against Job. He tells Job, I have heard you say I am pure and without sin, yet God has found fault with me; he considers me among his enemies. He asks Job why Job has said that God does not make man pay for his actions, and then continues on to say, God does speak to them, he speaks to them in a dream and terrifies them with warnings.

Ch 34 - Elihu continues on saying Job proclaims that he is innocent yet God denies him justice, he is right but called a liar, he says it does not benefit man to follow God. Elihu tells Job, God does not do evil or wrong. What ever God gives man is what he deserves based on his actions.

Tuesday 9/25 Job Ch 35 - Elihu asks Job, do you think it is okay to say God will clear or forgive me but then turn around and say there is nothing to be gained by turning to God. Elihu says, God does not answer wicked men when they call out because of their arrogance. He does not answer their empty pleas, He pays no attention to them.

I would like to insert a disclaimer here. These are just my thoughts regarding what I am reading. They may not be the same thoughts as yours but I would love to hear your thoughts as long as they can be shared in a constructive way. If you feel I have interpreted something wrong, please feel free to let me know, nicely. My goal in this series is to grow and learn. However I am doing this mainly on my own and may not always get everything right so I would love interaction as long as it is not attacking. Thank you.

Next weeks reading schedule:

Wednesday 10/10 Job Ch 36

Thursday 10/11 Job Ch 37

Friday 10/12 Job Ch 38

Saturday 10/13 Job Ch 39 & Ch 40

Sunday 10/14 Job Ch 41 & Ch 42

Monday 10/15 Genesis Ch 12

Tuesday 10/16 Genesis Ch 13

You may notice that some days have 2 chapters instead of just one. I found that on the weekends I have more time to study so I decided to take advantage of that and read 2 chapters. There will be weeks that won't have 2 chapters on the weekends because of time restraints and there may be weekdays that I increase to 2 chapters based on my time allowances. You can always move a chapter to the weekend if you find that you are unable to read 2 chapters on the weekdays when I can.

I really hope you decide to join me my on my bible study journey, if you do, I would love to hear from you, whether it be in the comments or by email.

Thanks for reading!

September Foodie Penpal Reveal

Today is the September Foodie Penpal reveal!

Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of what I sent my penpal this month and she's not feeling well so she decided not to do a post. Hopefully she'll be feeling better soon and will be able to let me know how she liked what I sent her. She is on an organic, raw foods diet so this was a little out of my league. The only thing I do that's raw is vegetables :) so I had to really look for things that I could send her that were raw and organic was a plus! I ended up finding a bunch of raw food bars at a new grocery store that I had been wanting to check out but this forced me to go to. I also sent her a bottle of organic raw vinegar so she could use it to make dressings/marinades. A large part of the excitement in this program is finding things that are different or out of the ordinary for me. For the last two months I have really had to think out side the box for my penpals.

Here's what I got this month from my penpal:

Score, a lot of good stuff!

Some salsa that I have yet to try, it looks so good though. I did finally buy some tortilla chips so I could try it, I can't wait!

A hot pepper mix with veggies. This stuff looks so good, I can't wait to try it, I'm making a tuna salad for lunch for this week so I'm planning on dicing this stuff up and mixing it in, I think it's gonna be so good!

This is the beautiful card she sent me with my package, it was so sweet!

These are magic milk straws. I had never heard of these, when I opened my package, these were the first thing I opened, chocolate of course, I was a little baffled at first as to how they worked but I figured it out (with the help of the directions on the package, haha). Hubby tried them with me, we felt like a couple of kids drinking our milk through these straws. They are filled with pellets of magic, when you put the straw in the milk, the ends are not completely sealed so as you drink through the straw, the milk passes through the pellets and they dissolve making your milk magically flavored. These are the coolest things I have ever seen! I am so going to buy more when we run out.

This tube of tomato paste is so neat, I've never seen tubes but I'm sure it is so much better than canned paste. I haven't used this stuff yet either, I have mexican rice on the menu this week so I'm planning on using this for the rice, I think it's going to make the flavor pop!

And last but definitely not least, a big ole chocolate bar. This is some awesome chocolate. Even Hubby, who doesn't like dark chocolate, liked this bar. It has little pieces of almond in it so every once in a while you get a little crunch of almond and then a little crunch of the sea salt. Soooo good!

This was a pretty good month, thank you to both of my penpals for making this a great month for me!

And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals.  In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 

If you’re interested in participating for October, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 

You must submit your information by October 4th as pairings will be emailed on October 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send Lindsay an email and she'll see if we get enough interest this month!

Pink & Black Wedding Cookies

So here are some cookies I made for my friend's wedding last year. They got married on 9/10/11! Pretty neat!

The colors were pink and black.

I think this is a great combination. The cookies came out great, they were just a few, special for the bride and groom and family. I made cupcakes for the wedding, I'll do those in a separate post.

Here's a shot of most of the cookies together

I really love how these came out.