Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Birthdays are huge at my house! I'm totally over the top because I love the idea of celebrating life what a person has accomplished so far and what is yet to come along with a celebration of the plan God is working out in that person's life...a chance for a person to evaluate her progress down the road of life and commit to making whatever changes are necessary to reach the desired endpoint at the desired time...as if she gets to coose either one of those things, but that is what I love about birthdays along with the party planning, decorations, cake, and gifts! so, what I'm thinking is....what am I going to do to make sure Jesus has the happiest of all birthdays this year? Of course, there is the party decor on which we are already working, and the birthday cake, but this scripture has been playing on my heart this year as the holidays have approached...just like Jesus wrote his wish list on my heart...Matthew 25:40 I tell you the truth, whatever you do for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me...So, that's it.....Jesus wants you, and me and everyone else to love the least in his name this and every year for his birthday! One very sinple idea...Tim, Lili, and I are baking and decorating salt dough ornaments to distribute at the rehabilitation facility where I was placed after my stroke...its cheap, its fun, and it creates wonderful memories all while you are giving an awesome gift to the creator of the universe. I mean, think about it who else has a life more worth celebrating? Not only did he live it perfectly and intentionally on our behalf, but he sacrificed it to pay the punishment for our wrong things! Now, that's something I'm going to celebrate!

Salt Dough Recipe

2 cups four
1 cup salt
1 cup water

Preheat oven: 325. Mix ingredients. May need to finish by kneading with hands. Roll out on a lightly floured surface. Use cookie cutters to form shapes or design by hand remembering that the thicker the ornament the longer it will take to bake! Add detail with forks, knives etc. Use a straw to poke a ribbon hole at the top of the ornament for hanging later. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes. remove and let cool before decorating with acrylic paints, glitter, googly eyes, and ribbon.

for a ginger bread looking dough, add coffe to it before shaping into ornaments or use food coloring to create a custom look.also, possibly, I haven't tried this, so I can't promise it will work, add cinnomon, or flavored extracts to the dough to make it scented. If you try it like that, let me know how it turns out, please:)

Finally, string with ribbon and disrtibute to the least for Jesus:)