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Wont you join us for a moment as my daughters and I go to our ladies tea party?

First, Ill tell you why we had this special occasion.

For the past year, us ladies each had one of the girls, down to the first graders, as our secret sister. Every now and then, wed take a gift along to church or a gathering of some sort and smuggle it somewhere on a shelf when no one was watching. The package had our secret sisters name on it written in block letters in an attempt to hide our handwriting.

At last, it was time for the secret sister revealing; all the ladies and girls were invited for the event.

Each of us ladies helped furnish food for a tea party dinner for them. The tables were decorated with a long burlap strip down the center, little candles, strip lights, flowers, and at each plate a homemade mini crispy candy topped with a dab of chocolate and a peanut butter ball perched on top. Each place setting was marked with their name chalked onto a small black plate hanging from the ceiling directly above their chairs.

Even the preschool girls sat a decorated table. Rayni was utterly impressed when she discovered a spot with her name on it. The atmosphere just had a coziness and warmth all its own as we sang several hymns before we thanked God for the food and enjoyed the tea party together.

Each dish was served in dainty tea party fashion.

First, we passed cute little sticky buns and tortilla wedges topped with cheese and sausage, then there were cucumber slices with a dab of the most delicious bacon dip on top. Next came these dainty little diamond-shaped finger jellos pieces. The pieces were then fitted together, forming a flower. Then there were little cream puffs followed by mini pecan pies, all of which had a small scoop of ice cream on top.

Its like my mom would say, You almost have to be a lady to appreciate the delicacy, the tastiness, and the time that was dedicated to preparing everything. After the meal, one of the ministers wives shared some thoughts on prayer. She concluded it with, And I am thankful that our prayers will still reach to heaven on each others behalf even after we have moved 1,700 miles.

It was a beautiful thought; we will all miss their family after they have moved to Montana next spring.

A few other ladies shared more thoughts on prayer when one of the ladies concluded with, And we do want to give recognition that today is a special day.

With that, they all sang Happy Birthday for me. Do you know the squirmy feeling of being in the center of attention, yet you did appreciate it? That was me. After the song, some of us started washing dishes. I was pre rinsing when my cousin, Eunice, came up to me and said, Come with me.

OK, what is going on? I asked.

She didnt give my question any satisfaction as she linked her arm in mine and just told me to come with her. As we rounded the corner, my eyes fell on the kitchen table, literally full of all sorts of food dishes.

You turned 30 today, right? There should be 30 dishes, she stated.

I could hardly believe what my eyes were trying to tell me. I didnt know what to say. I felt like going into tears at the absolute thoughtfulness of their dear hearts. I had never imagined anything like it. Turning toward them, I said, Thank you, dear sisters. It means so much.

As I browsed through the pile, I discovered various types of cookies, casseroles, a pizza, a sugar-free cake which my sister-in-law knew I liked, apple dumplings, and even a container with mini cupcake brownies with a note which said, Thirty cupcakes instead of 30 candles.

I was in awe, and almost too dumbfounded for words. Once I got my senses together, I stacked everything into boxes and set it outside to stay cold as a lot of the items were frozen, ready for the freezer.

After my return home went through the stack with me. Even though he knew the surprise was coming up, he too was completely amazed. After some shuffling and organizing, I now have a freezer full of homemade goodies, ready to pull from the freezer and serve. Its like I told Eunice, the one who planned it, I just look at it as a gift from God.

With homeschooling and attending to the needs of my little ones, I dont get to spend a lot of time in the kitchen as Id love to. It feels like I get enough done to get us floating from day today. And Im okay with that. Gods grace is sufficient for every moment.

Choosing a recipe is tough, there really are too many good ones to choose from. Perhaps Ill settle with the chocolate fudge pudding that a friend made for my birthday.

As a girl I remember hoe Dad always liked eating this warm with ice cream. For us, winter time was perfect for ice cream as Dad would gather snow to use in our hand crank ice cream freezer.

Upside-down Chocolate Fudge Cake

3 tablespoon butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup boiling water

Cream together butter and sugar. Add milk and next three ingredients alternately into creamed butter mixture. Put into ungreased 9 by 9 inch pan.

Mix brown sugar, cocoa, and salt. Sprinkle on top of batter. Do not stir. Pour boiling water over all. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

Fascinatingly enough, as you pull it out of the oven you will discover that the cake is on top and a thick fudge sauce on the bottom! Serve cold or warm with ice cream, whipped cream, or milk.

Gloria Yoder is an Amish mom, writer, and homemaker in rural Illinois. Readers can write to Gloria at 10510 E. 350th Ave., Flat Rock, IL 62427.

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Yoder ladies attend tea party - Delaware Gazette

Sugar plums and sweet treats filled the 4th floor of the GoggleWorks Sunday afternoon for the 3rd annual Sugar Plum Fairy Tea Party. The festive tradition is hosted by Berks Ballet Theatre as preview for the the annual holiday performance of The Nutcracker.

Taking inspiration from the Nutcrackers land of the sweets, the afternoon featured an assortment of desserts, crafts, and a special performer meet and greet. In addition, guests were invited to part take in story time, which featured a three-dimensional pop up book of the classic Nutcracker story.

I think its a very nice interactive way for the kids to get up and close with the dancers, says Director of Berks Ballet Theatre Conservatory of Dance, Nathan Bland.

During the actual performance of The Nutcracker, the stage is so far away. So for the little kids, the Tea Party provides an intimate way to see the performers up close.

After crafts and lunch Berks Ballet Theatre performers put on a special preview of The Nutcracker for the young audience.

Selling over 130 tickets, the whimsical atmosphere filled the GoogleWorks industrial chic 4th floor studio. This is my daughter first year in ballet and she had an amazing time today said Kathleen from West Reading.

Oley resident Kristin Kohler and her daughter enjoyed the afternoon Tea Party. I liked the food and the story time mentioned Kristins daughter. Weve been coming out to see The Nutcracker performance since she was little. Shes been so fascinated by the dancers. said Kohler.

Berks Ballet Theatre will be performing the classic tale of Clara and her beloved Nutcracker December 14th and 15th at the Scottish Rite Cathedral in West Reading. Tickets: berksballettheatre.com/tickets

Continued here:
Sugar Plum Fairy Tea Party Gives Children Preview of the Nutcracker - rdgmag.com

Two Boston Tea Party participants buried in Worcesters Hope Cemetery will be honored for their role in the legendary political protest on Thursday afternoon.

The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum, in partnership with the City of Worcester and Hope Cemetery, will place commemorative markers at the grave sites of Peter Slater Jr. and Benjamin Tucker Jr. for the first time ever.

The museum is placing a total of 85 commemorative markers at graves of known Boston Tea Party participants buried within some of the states oldest burial grounds leading up to the 246th anniversary of the historic protest on Dec. 16.

The commemorative plaques will mark the final resting places of many of the brave people, including tradesmen and young adults, involved in the single most important event leading up to the American Revolution, the museum said in a statement.

Other upcoming plaque placements will take place in the Old burial Ground in Cambridge, Phipps Street Burial Ground in Charlestown, Green Street Cemetery in Marblehead, Pine Grove Cemetery in Lynn, and Harmony Grove Cemetery and Broad Street Cemetery in Salem.

The markers include an image inspired by Nathaniel Curriers The Destruction of the Tea at Boston Harbor lithograph created in 1846 a popular depiction of the Boston Tea Party.

In subsequent years, the museum hopes to place additional plaques at graves of participants buried throughout New England and the United States.

A ceremony will take place at Hope Cemetery on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.

Excerpt from:
Two Boston Tea Party participants buried in Worcesters Hope Cemetery to be honored with commemorative markers - MassLive.com

Democrats in Washington County plan to ramp up criticism of what they call a lack of access to their Congressional representative, U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, starting with a Tuesday-afternoon protest at his Washington County district office.

Its been 328 days since he took office and he has not had any town halls, said Sharon Laffey, a social worker in Buffalo Township who organized the Wheres Guy? protest. Laffey said Reschenthalers office has told her to sign up for his e-newsletter when she asks about upcoming town halls.

I grew concerned about the fact that hes not having a town hall when hes in his home district, Laffey said. I know congresspeople have town halls all the time. Conor Lamb has very frequent town halls.

Reschenthaler is far from the first elected Republican to be targeted with such protests. After President Trump's election in 2016, Democratic activists began seeking out Republican town halls to raise concerns, emulating similar "Tea Party" protests by conservatives during the Obama Administration. Republicans who have declined to hold the gatherings, like U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey or former Congressman Tim Murphy, have been the subject of weekly demonstrations with names like Mondays with Murphy and Tuesdays with Toomey.

Laffey is a Democratic committee chairperson in Buffalo Township and a member of the Washington County Democratic Committee, though she said Tuesdays rally is not affiliated with the committee. She said Reschenthaler's office told her held an agriculture town hall with farmers and also held a tele-town hall.

Reschenthaler's office documented his October meeting with farmers by posting photos on Facebook photos. Its unclear when Reschenthaler held a tele-town hall. There appear to have been no announcements by his office, which did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

Laffey said shes most concerned about Reschenthalers stance on issues of national interest, such as the impeachment investigation against President Trump, and the Congressmans support for the administrations immigration policy at the southern border. Laffey grew particularly frustrated with her representative when he called Special Counsel Robert Muellers investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election un-American during Mueller's testimony before the House Judiciary Committee in July.

[Reschenthaler] is very vocal in parroting the White House, Laffey said. He is very vocal in calling the investigation going on right now ... a sham. If he would just not say anything about the things that are going on nationally that are clearly wrong, that would be one thing. But he goes out of his way to perpetuate the lies that are coming out of the White House.

Laffey said she wants Reschenthaler to know there are people in his district who dont agree with him, though she understands Democrats are significantly outnumbered.

Reschenthaler's district is made up of rural southwestern Pennsylvania counties where Trump racked up two-to-one margins in the 2016 election. Reschenthaler won his first Congressional race over Democrat Bibiana Boerio two years later by nearly 16 percentage points.

This is a red area, I get that, Laffey said. But we need to have somebody who represents us who is not carrying the water for Donald Trump no matter what he says or does.

The Tuesday afternoon event is to include a photo of Reschenthaler with President Trumps personal attorney, Rudolph Giuliani. Laffey said thats emblematic of Reschenthaler's priorities.

Theres also a picture of him on Air Force One, theres a picture of him with Donald Trump and theyre both giving thumbs up, Laffey said. There are several pictures of him on Fox News. Well, where is he in our district?

Laffey planned the protest when Congressional representatives are scheduled to be in their home district based on the House calendar. She said she plans to hold a follow-up event in December.

Read more from the original source:
'Where's Guy?' Protesters Want Reschenthaler To Hold Town Halls - 90.5 WESA

The American anti-government movement may have gotten its start here in Alaska with the Alaska Independence Party, the Libertarians, the Succeed or Succumb slogan or later the tea party. Unlike some right-wingers, I do not know what others truly think nor have the audacity to tell others what they are really saying. However, I suspect that many in those movements have a willful know-nothing attitude about civil government in Alaska and the nation. Both Alaskas governor and the U.S. president have demonstrated a severe lack of understanding of basic American civics, that is, how our government operates, why it does things or the way it deals with issues. These groups claim to hate the bureaucracy as if it were alien or unnatural; these attitudes reveal their misunderstanding or willful, outright ignorance.

One of the realities of those views are the insults inflicted upon all governmental actions and actors of the past. It is as if every bill debated, law enacted or regulatory hearing ever conducted was corrupt at its heart. Every individual testifying was concerned only with their own self interests and those were corrupt. This is obvious nonsense. If applied to the revolution of 1776 or even the writing of the Alaska Constitution, the basic lie is revealed, because they were honorable citizens doing their best. Actually, those uninformed viewpoints are un-patriotic and counter-revolutionary. Sadly, our president too often heeds the words of a czar or other autocrat, which leads to a descent into the divine rights of the king, something our revolution set out to overthrow.

Politicians should have the decency to learn the operations of that necessary bureaucracy and the many reasons for the expenditures that have been sustained not merely for decades but generations. If you do not understand the whys, the hows, other means and the history, you have no business running for or holding any high office of public trust.

Chopping up and discarding our system of public education, our university system, some of the means to better public health or a fundamentally necessary Marine Highway System are the actions of enemies of our great state. Our president and governor ought to stop inflicting damage and resign.

Have something on your mind? Send to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Letters under 200 words have the best chance of being published. Writers should disclose any personal or professional connections with the subjects of their letters. Letters are edited for accuracy, clarity and length.

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Letter: Know-nothings and their consequences - Anchorage Daily News