Book Review- Muhammad

I had a marvelous opportunity  to read a terrific book called Muhammad, by Deepak Chopra which chronicles the life of the Muhammad and how he rose from being just a simple man to the last Prophet. This book really gave me insight into his life and just exactly what Islam is about. Did you know that Islam means "peace?"

Born in 570 C.E., Muhammad saw himself as an ordinary man, a merchant, father, husband  and businessman who often sought solitude from the rough and tumble life of the city, Mecca. His father, Abdullah, was killed on a caravan trip when he was just a small boy and was raised by his uncle Abu Talib. He simply saw himself as "A man among men."

The story of Muhammad is told through the eyes of those closest to him... by those who were touched by his wisdom and during his lifetime he battled misunderstanding and  hatred, even from his own relatives, to protect and nurture the new faith. At the age of forty, he staggered out from his place of refuge high above the city a shocked and shattered man having just been visited by the angel Gabriel and with time he began to "recite" just as Gabriel had told him to. Recite is the root word for the Koran (or Qu'ran) and Muhammad found himself dumbstruck by this angelic command because he was known for his quiet observation and did not join in with other common practices. 

I found this to be a wonderful insight into Islam, it's roots and the man who made it all possible for the believers. Deepak Chopra has done an excellent job of bringing Muhammad's character to life so that we can truly see him in a new light. I had known little of this Prophet and to be able to understand his culture and beliefs was truly an amazing journey. In this world today, especially after 9/11 it was refreshing to understand the true nature of Islam and with understanding comes tolerance...a little something that we could all use a dose of no matter different our faith or beliefs are.

Serenity Sunday

An affirmation is a spoken or thought phrase that harmonises your energy field and thus evokes feelings of well being.


This really is the idea, you repeat a phrase that you find uplifting repeatedly until the reality of that statement becomes grounded in your physical world.


An affirmations job is to evoke positive feelings in you, to uplift you, or shift you into a more positive and hopeful state of being at which point the Law Of Attraction (Like attracts like) sets to work mirroring, affirming and confirming that you are indeed absolutely right to feel so hopeful and optimistic.


The key is choosing the right affirmations for you, ones that really evoke feelings of well being and thus “work”.


Breathe, relax, pause and gently ask inwardly for the optimum affirmation to become conscious for you…


~ “I am safe”
~ “Opportunities are everywhere, something will turn up”
~ “Every problem is an opportunity for growth and evolution”
~ “Lots of people have overcome similar problems, so will I”
~ “I am focused solely upon solutions to my problems”
~ “I am fully supported in finding solutions to all my problems”
~ “In time I will look back at this and laugh” etc…


Only you really know what works for you its just a case of trying different affirmations until you begin to feel more optimistic. Trust yourself. Then after awhile try new ones that may bring even greater feelings of hope and well being. Stick with it, keep practising shifting yourself into feelings of well being make it a habit, why settle for less?


My List:


1.) My family


2.) Great friends


3.) Changing of the season


4.) Laughter


5.) Mulled wine


6.) Rose petals in a basket


7.) Hot baths


8.) Good music


9.) Movie night


10.) Tarot cards

Let Us Never Forget

We shall never forget

  We shall keep this day,

  We shall keep the events and the tears

  In our minds, our memory and our hearts

 and take them with us as we carry on.

Silly Picture Of The Week

Finding common interests with your best friend...priceless!

Niko and Calliope spot a fly.

Recipe Of The Week

Swedish Meatballs

Meat: (the main ingredient)
2 pounds ground lean meat: use beef, pork or veal
(may use some textured vegetable protein ground beef substitute)


Filler: (to give the meatballs the right consistency)
2 eggs
1 cup milk, cream, meat broth or water
1/2 cup all-purpose flour OR 1/2 cup fine bread crumbs OR 1 cup torn bread OR 1 cup mashed potatoes
Salt and Pepper:
Salt to taste (1 1/2 teaspoons suggested)
Pepper to taste (white or black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon suggested)


More Flavor:
Option 1:
1 minced onion
1/4 tsp dry mustard or 1/4 teaspoon allspice


Option 2:
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg


By hand or on medium speed with an electric mixture, thoroughly blend the ground meat, filler, salt and pepper, and other flavorings. Beat until very well mixed. Form into balls about 3/4"-1 1/2" in diameter: do this by hand, or use a tablespoon-sized cookie scoop, or a melon baller. Makes 30-150 meatballs depending on how large they are. Serves 6-8, more on the smörgåsbord.


Cooking methods:


Pan-fried: Heat a skillet with 2-3 tablespooons of cooking oil to medium-high heat. Fill the skillet about half full with the meatballs, and fry them for about 10 minutes. Shake the skillet gently during cooking to keep the meatballs turning and to cook them evenly, about 10-15 minutes depending on size. You may need a spatula to encourage some of the more stubborn meatballs to turn over properly. As soon as meatballs are browned, take them out of the pan, let them cool and drain a bit, and keep them warm (try using an oven-proof dish in a barely-warm oven) until ready to add sauce and serve.


Oven-fried: Use ungreased baking sheets -- the kind with rims on all four sides. Separate the meatballs slightly, bake at 450F for 10-15 minutes. Remove carefully from the baking sheets..


For most sauces, you'll stir the meatballs into the sauce then transfer them to the serving dish. Meatballs can be prepared ahead, and refrigerated in a covered container for 2-3 days or frozen in airtight containers for several months. You can freeze cooled meatballs spread out on a clean, cool baking sheet, then transfer them to airtight containers, if you want to be able to make a large quantity of meatballs and remove just enough at one time. Thawed or refrigerated meatballs should be heated in a single layer on an ungreased rimmed baking sheet for 10-15 minutes at 375F.


Brown sauce or red wine sauce or sherry sauce:


2 tablespoons pan fat
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup beef broth (may be made from bouillon) or 1 can condensed beef broth
1/2 - 3/4 cup water (to taste)
3 tablespoons red wine or sherry (optional)


Add the flour to the pan fat in a saucepan, mix thoroughly. Discard the rest of the fat from the cooking pan, then rinse the pan in some of the broth to loosen the bits of meat from the pan. Add the broth to the fat/flour base in the saucepan. (Tip: at this point, mixing the flour/fat mixture and the broth mixture in the blender removes all lumps thoroughly.) Heating this mixture, slowly add the water to taste. Bring to a boil. (Add red wine or sherry if desired at this point.)


Sour cream sauce or Gjetost sauce:


1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup shredded gjetost


Transfer the meatballs to the serving dish. Discard the fat from the cooking pan, stir the sour cream into the pan to pick up the rest of the pan drippings and the bits of meat. Heat slightly, do not boil. Stir in the shredded cheese if desired. Pour hot mixture over the meat.


White sauce:


2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup half and half or cream
1/2 cup water or chicken broth (may be made from bouillon)
Fresh dill leaves or parsley leaves (optional)


Add the flour to the butter in a saucepan, mix thoroughly, turn on heat to low heat. Discard the fat from the cooking pan, then rinse the pan in the water or broth to loosen the bits of meat from the pan. Add the water or broth to the butter/flour base in the saucepan and mix thoroughly. (Tip: at this point, mixing the flour/fat mixture and the broth mixture in the blender removes all lumps thoroughly.) Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low, and add the half and half or cream slowly. Simmer until a good consistency. Add dill or parsley if desired. Stir the meatballs into the sauce until heated through. Transfer to the serving dish and serve immediately.

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"What Is...?" Wednesday

Dream Catchers

Dream catchers are arts and crafts of the Native American people...the original web dream catcher of the Ojibwa was intended to teach natural wisdom. Dream catchers of twigs, sinew, and feathers have been woven since ancient times by Ojibwa people and were woven by the grandfathers and grandmothers for newborn children and hung above the cradleboard to give the infants peaceful, beautiful dreams. 

Originally the Native American dream catcher was woven on twigs of the red willow using thread from the stalk of the stinging nettle. The red willow and twigs from other trees of the willow family, as well as red twig dogwood can be found in many parts of the United States. These twigs are gathered fresh and dried in a circle or pulled into a spiral shape depending upon their intended use. They used natural feathers and semi-precious gemstone, one gemstone to each web because there is only one creator in the web of life


A Legend


Long ago when the word was sound, an old Lakota spiritual leader was on a high mountain and had a vision. In his vision, Iktomi, the great trickster and searcher of wisdom, appeared in the form of a spider. Iktomi spoke to him in a sacred language. As he spoke, Iktomi the spider picked up the elder's willow hoop which had feathers, horsehair, beads and offerings on it, and began to spin a web. He spoke to the elder about the cycles of life, how we begin our lives as infants, move on through childhood and on to adulthood. Finally we go to old age where we must be taken care of as infants, completing the cycle.


But, Iktomi said as he continued to spin his web, in each time of life there are many forces, some good and some bad. If you listen to the good forces, they will steer you in the right direction. But, if you listen to the bad forces, they'll steer you in the wrong direction and may hurt you. So these forces can help, or can interfere with the harmony of Nature. While the spider spoke, he continued to weave his web.


When Iktomi finished speaking, he gave the elder the web and said, The web is a perfect circle with a hole in the center. Use the web to help your people reach their goals, making good use of their ideas, dreams and visions. If you believe in the great spirit, the web will filter your good ideas and the bad ones will be trapped and will not pass.


The elder passed on his vision onto the people and now many Indian people have a dreamcatcher above their bed to sift their dreams and visions. The good will pass through the center hole to the sleeping person. The evil in their dreams are captured in the web, where they perish in the light of the morning sun. It is said the dreamcatcher holds the destiny of the future.

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Deck Review- Ask The Queens Advice Card Deck

I'm reviewing a really fun deck today, the Ask the Queens advice card deck. This card deck gives you sage advice "for getting ahead, without losing your head." These cards were adapted from "Doomed Queens" by Kris Waldherr and I must say, it is a charming deck to work with.

The cards are a bit over sized at 5.75" x 4.25" and have a wonderful matte finish. The way in which one uses the cards is quite simple, shuffle them well whilst formulating a question, the more specific you can be the better. Then choose your card by holding your hand over the cards until one just begs your attention, choosing that card will deliver to you your very special message from one of the Queens. The deck advises, mind you, that the answers may be a tad on the gloomy side because of their life experiences so keep that in mind if you happen upon a message that may or may not be a little negative.

I absolutely love this deck because not only is each card full of wisdom and experience it also tells you a bit of information on that particular queen and a little of the history too. I like it when I can learn a little something on the way too, don't you? For instance, the advice from Queen Alexandra Romanov is " Don't trust a holy man who acts like the devil." Of course she gives this gloomy advice because as we all know, she and her family were executed by firing squad in 1918 but what you may not have been aware of is that hemophilia  ran in her side and her fifth and only son, Alexei... heir to the throne, was born with this condition.

Some of the regal advice comes from Queens such as Marie Luisa; Marie Antoinette; Catherine Howard; Catherine of Aragon and Diana Spencer. All and all, Ask the Queens Advice Card Deck is a fabulous way to get a little insight from a few ladies who have seen it all and it gives you a history lesson to boot! This would be a wonderful deck to place upon one's coffee table for a brilliant conversation piece. 

Gardening Idea Of The Week

Landscaping the pond outside your home will increase the appeal of your home in several ways. But, this requires a lot of planning and you will need accessories to give your pond area a great look, feel and atmosphere. Your pond will contain living and nonliving things and will be the center of attraction when people meet at your home. Here, we talk of a few ways in which you can landscape your pond better.


How large an area do you have for your pond? How are you going to populate it? What are you going to accessorize it with—live rocks, aquatic ferns, pebbles, etc. could be great additions. How will you place your lighting? Do you want a static pond or a pond that has a motorized bubbling system or something similar added to it? There are a lot of designs you could pick up from the Internet itself. Any home improvement magazine could have some good ideas as well. Do not hesitate to visit a local home improvement store and talk to people there, especially if they stock pond landscaping products.


Plants will add an amazing amount of detail to your pond landscape design. They will provide natural food for some of the life-forms in the pond and they will add to the overall esthetic effect. Choose plants with care. If you have your pond in the shade, you could best choose different kinds of water lilies such as Virginia, Texas Dawn, Indiana or Comanche. Some other plants include Cardinal Flower, Corkscrew Rush, taros and certain varieties of mints.


Fencing is important to your pond landscaping for many reasons. It provides safety if there are small children near the pond, as well as privacy. Fences can also come in a wide variety of materials and structural types. A wood fence is great for keeping your pond area natural looking, while stone will add a more integrated look into your landscaping. An ornate metal fence will add elegance and style to the entire backyard.


Pond lighting adds a powerful impact to your pond design. Both perimeter lights and underwater lights can be used to provide a great place to swim at night. There are many decorative lights to choose from and even add color for more appeal.


Pond landscape design is only limited to your imagination. You can design your pond area to include waterfalls, spas, eating areas or recreational items such as slides and basketball nets. Design your pond the way that will fit in with your overall landscape design, as well as the needs of your family.

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Serenity Sunday

Writing a gratitude journal can be a great way of learning a more positive way of thinking. It helps you to really appreciate the small pleasures in life, and to appreciate the things you do have, instead of the things you don't. It can even be a useful tool for

Silly Picture Of The Week

Fast becoming best buddies!