Deborah Vogts's Blog, page 36

This Week's Recipes

Here are this week's new additions at Country at Heart Recipes.Have a great weekend!
Cheddar Bacon Scones
Tangy Sourdough Bread
Featured Author, Karen Witemeyer's Easy Cherry Salad

My Christmas Eve Table

This past year was the first time I've tried to create a pretty centerpiece for our Christmas Eve Dinner. It was so much fun, and I really loved the creamy look together with my Blue Willow dishes. (You do not know how I struggle each and every year to buy a set of Winterberry dishes from Pfaltzgraff, but each year I resist. And I'm so glad I did!)
We started with cream colored tapered candles in glass candle holders that were my grandma's. I also ordered a stain and wrinkle-resistant tablecloth I found on Amazon. It worked like a charm!
Then we found some beautiful sparkly poinsettias from the Home Place in Pittsburg, KS
and Abbey made these lovely wire pearl balls to use as accents.
Then, of course, I couldn't resist adding some birds.
And some twinkly battery operated lights that I found on Amazon.
We finished with these blue and cream gift labels from Walmart to use at each place setting. It was the perfect finishing touch to the table. 
This just goes to show that you do not need to have a pretty set of Christmas dishes to make your holiday table look festive. Enjoy the moments . . . .

Book Preview ~ Out of the Ashes

Out of the Ashes, by Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse

After the death of their father, Collette and Jean-Michel Langelier are no longer tied to post-war France. While his sister dreams of adventure, Jean-Michel is hoping to finally escape reminders of the horrors he faced in the war. When Jean-Michel receives an unexpected invitation for them to visit Alaska and the Curry Hotel, it seems an opportunity for a change he needs. 

Katherine Demarchis is a young widow who does not grieve the dangerous husband she was forced to marry. Now she just wants to retreat to a quiet life, content to be alone. First, though, she's agreed to accompany her grandmother on a final trip, but never expects to see a man from her past. 

Katherine and Jean-Michel once shared a deep love that was torn apart by forces beyond their control. Reunited now, have the years changed them too deeply to rediscover what they had? And when Jean-Michel's nightmares return with terrifying consequences, will faith be enough to heal what's been broken for so long? Purchase the book HERE.

Tracie Peterson is the award-winning author of more than 100 novels, both historical and contemporary. Her avid research resonates in her many bestselling series. Tracie and her family make their home in Montana. Visit www.traciepeterson.com to learn more.

Kimberley Woodhouse is a multi-published author and a popular speaker and teacher who has shared the theme of "Joy Through Trials" with hundreds of thousands of people across the country. Kim is a pastor's wife and is passionate about music and Bible study. She lives and writes in Colorado. Visit www.kimandkaylawoodhouse.com for more information. 

This Week's Recipes

Here are this week's new additions at Country at Heart Recipes.Have a great weekend!
Beef and Noodles
Roasted Chicken Stew
Cookbook Preview ~ Lidia's Celebrate Like an Italian

Vogts' Family Christmas 2017

We had a wonderful Christmas with our family this past month. Here are a few pictures from our time together.
Our Christmas Eve Table
Christmas Eve with my mom and dad
Our silly daughters

Henry's First Christmas
Opening Presents with Emma
Sam Receives Pioneer Woman
Grandma Judi's Crown Roast
Playing with the Nativity

Book Preview ~ The Ladies of Ivy Cottage

The Ladies of Ivy Cottage, by Julie Klassen

Living with the two Miss Groves in Ivy Cottage, impoverished gentlewoman Rachel Ashford is determined to earn her own livelihood . . . somehow. When the village women encourage her to open a subscription library with the many books she has inherited or acquired through donations, Rachel discovers two mysteries hidden among them. A man who once broke her heart helps her search for clues, but will both find more than they bargained for? 

Rachel's friend and hostess, Mercy Grove, has given up thoughts of suitors and fills her days managing her girls' school. So when several men take an interest in Ivy Cottage, she assumes pretty Miss Ashford is the cause. Exactly what--or who--has captured each man's attention? The truth may surprise them all.

Meanwhile, life has improved at the coaching inn and Jane Bell is ready to put grief behind her. Now if only the man she misses would return--but where is he?

As the women of Ivy Hill search for answers about the past and hope for the future, might they find love along the way? Purchase the book HERE.

Julie Klassen loves all things Jane--Jane Eyre and Jane Austen. She worked in publishing for sixteen years and now writes full time. Three of her novels have won the Christy Award for Historical Romance. Her book, The Silent Governess, was also a finalist in the Minnesota Book Awards, ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Awards, and Romance Writers of America's RITA Awards. Julie is a graduate of the University of Illinois. She and her husband have two sons and live near St. Paul, Minnesota. Visit www.julieklassen.com for more information.

This Week's Recipes

Here are this week's new additions at Country at Heart Recipes.May you have a Happy New Year!
Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
Hoppin' John Shrimp
Featured Author Gail Gaymer Martin's Lemon Chicken with Apple Salsa

Twelve Days of Christmas Tea Party

Two years ago, my daughters and I hosted a Twelve Days of Christmas Tea Party at my grandma's house. 

Our youngest daughter took care of the decorations,
while I handled the menu. 
We found these gorgeous Victorian Graphic 45 Twelve Days of Christmas scrap booking pads online that we based our decorations on. 
You can find the pads HERE, or they can also be found on Ebay. 
Below are some of the special foods that I made, including the Pimento Cheese Tea Sandwiches and Chicken Salad Tea Sandwiches pictured above.
Russian Tea Cakes
Lemon Tarts with Blueberries and Raspberries and Glazed English Walnuts
Lemon Biscotti and Cherry-Pistachio Biscotti
Herbed Parmesan Cheese Spread Canapes and Peppermint Meringues.
For games, we had a scavenger hunt, played Christmas Bingo, and sang the Twelve Days of Christmas, with solos for each day. It was lots of fun. See more Tea Party ideas HERE. 

Book Preview ~ The Lacemaker

The Lacemaker, by Laura Frantz

When colonial Williamsburg explodes like a powder keg on the eve of the American Revolution, Lady Elisabeth "Liberty" Lawson is abandoned by her fiancé and suspected of being a spy for the hated British. No one comes to her aid save the Patriot Noble Rynallt, a man with formidable enemies of his own. Liberty is left with a terrible choice. Will the Virginia belle turned lacemaker side with the radical revolutionaries, or stay true to her English roots? And at what cost?

Historical romance favorite Laura Frantz is back with a suspenseful story of love, betrayal, and new beginnings. With her meticulous eye for detail and her knack for creating living, breathing characters, Frantz continues to enchant historical fiction readers who long to feel they are a part of the story. Buy the book HERE.


Award-winning, bestselling author Laura Frantz is passionate about all things historical, particularly the 18th-century, and writes her manuscripts in longhand first. Her stories often incorporate Scottish themes that reflect her family heritage. She is a direct descendant of George Hume, Wedderburn Castle, Berwickshire, Scotland, who was exiled to the American colonies for his role in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, settled in Virginia, and is credited with teaching George Washington surveying in the years 1748-1750. Frantz lives and writes in a log cabin in the heart of Kentucky. Learn more about Laura and her books at www.laurafrantz.net

This Week's Recipes

Here are this week's new additions at Country at Heart Recipes.May you have a blessed New Year!
Perfect Waffles
Christmas Reindeer Snack
New Year's Eve Party Ideas