Christmas Ice Lanterns

Every year at Christmas I make Christmas Ice Lanterns...they are such an awesome way to be expressive to my country livin' and they look so beautiful lite up at night especially if we are lucky enough to have snow....I have used them to light my sidewalk or porch and even used them on my table as a "Mini" ice sculpture....really easy to make yet people absolutely love them...here's a quick "How to"

1. Fill the large container about 3/4 full of water.

2. Place the small container inside the larger container of water.

3. Place rocks or some heavy object inside the small container to weigh it down so it's halfway down into the water.

4. Place a strip of duct tape across the top of the large container so it holds down the smaller container in the water. The top of the smaller container should be about even with the top of the large bucket.

5. Freeze the bucket of water by placing it outside if temperatures get below freezing at night or putting in a large freezer. Set it aside until frozen solid.

6. Run warm water over the outside of the large bucket or set it in a pan of warm water to remove the ice.

7. Run some warm water inside the small container to loosen it and remove it. This leaves an indentation in the ice lantern to set a candle.

8. Place a candle inside the indentation of the ice lantern.

9. Make several ice lanterns and line your driveway or sidewalk with them to light the way for your guests. Place the ice lanterns along your driveway or sidewalk.

Hope you enjoy your ice lantern as much as I do :)

Remembering the true meaning of Christmas

...Today is the start of the 12 Days of Christmas....always one of my favorite times of year :) In the past year I have lost great people, seen people I love hurt in ways I never would have imagined, friendships have been tested, family has been tested and yet there still seems to be joy everywhere I look....at times I can't understand why people are so happy, are they just blind to all the homeless, starving and unemployed people...don't they see the sadness in the eyes of the people who have had to bury a loved one...are they just selfish?
Then I look at my life, the life I share with my husband and children...one that with no matter what life throws at us we still have joy in our life, we still have a home, hubby has a job, we have laughter and love...we have our friends...our true friends who at these rough times are more precious than gold..we a have food in our bellies, warm beds and furry animals who love us unconditional..we have another day to decide if we're going to be happy or let the sadness of the world around us defy who we are....so if I think about the people who seems to be clueless about what's going on around them, maybe it's just that they see the joys in their lives as well...no matter how small something may be to me to someone else it may be a huge joy so who am I to judge them for being happy and not seeing things as they really are...but with that being said, I ask you to if just for a second...step away from your life and the great pleasures of it and think about the people who struggle everyday with finding that joy..it doesn't cost anything to be kind to someone who's sitting alone at that tiny dinner, Thanking a Vet for their service is simple and it may very well be the greatest gift you could give them, be there for someone who is hurting, listen without prejudice...remind that person who has lost someone they love that they live within them and in their heart is where they will always be...make a child smile, do a random act of kindness and not expect anything in return, love unconditional, pay it forward....I know that with 12 days til Christmas I plan to be the best person I can be, not because it's Christmas but because it's the right thing to do, I don't plan on getting caught up in the commercial end of the holiday but on what the TRUE meaning of Christmas really is:

Christmas is love. John 3:16-17 says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." The true meaning of Christmas is the celebration of this incredible act of love.