grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

2015 in review: top blog posts

By

Top Posts 2015

What would year-end be without a little review and reflection? A regular week, I suppose. As a blogger, I like to look back to see which were my top blog posts. And by “top”, I mean those blog posts written in 2015 with the most page views. My most popular five posts of all time were written in 2013 and 2014, thanks in part to the power of Pinterest (which is much like compounding interest).

Looking back helps me look forward. Knowing what my readers connected with and related to helps me plan for 2016. (Whoa, saying 2016 sounds crazy. Remember ten minutes ago how we didn’t think we would survive Y2K?)

So here’s 2015 in review—my top blog posts all tied up in a bow. Plaid, of course. Continue Reading

Merry Christmas from St. Patrick’s Cathedral

By

Merry Christmas to all my reader friends! I thought I’d share a few pictures I took a couple of weeks ago at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. Christmas in New York is gorgeous and visiting St. Patrick’s was a definite highlight for me. In the midst of such traffic and congestion and holiday hustle and bustle, directly across from the madness of Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick’s Cathedral provides a place of peaceful sanctuary.

The building is beyond stunning. Incredibly, it was built entirely from donations from poor immigrants and $1,000 pledges from 103 prominent residents.The cornerstone was laid in 1858, construction was stalled for five years during the Civil War, and the doors opened in 1869.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

According to cathedral history, Archbishop Hughes’ original construction proposal was ridiculed. The site was considered to be in a “near-wilderness” area too far outside the city. Archbishop Hughes persisted in his vision of building the most beautiful Gothic Cathedral in the New World in what he believed would one day be the heart of the city. Neither the bloodshed of the Civil War nor the resultant lack of manpower or funds would derail the ultimate fulfillment of Hughes’ dream. Continue Reading

Chocolate Crinkles: the most magical cookie of all!

By

Chocolate Crinkles

Chocolate Crinkles are everyone’s favorite, especially at Christmastime. This throwback recipe is from Betty Crocker herself. I haven’t changed a thing because why trifle with chocolate perfection? My mother made these when I was a kid, and I remember thinking they were magical because in the end, there’s a powdered sugar design on top. Like a snowflake, no two are alike.

These were Santa’s favorite, too. We always left a few on a plate near the fireplace, with a glass of milk. Santa needed lots of strength for traveling around the globe on Christmas Eve.

And the reindeer always got carrots.Continue Reading

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

THANKS FOR READING!