FRIDAY BLOG HOP

Thank you for joining the Friday Blog Hop hosted by myself (Nicole) at Mama to 4 Blessings and Melissa at Home Grown Families! We invite you to join us every Friday to make more blog friends!

It's very easy to join in on the fun!

Add your main blog (PLEASE DO NOT LINK UP GIVEAWAYS) link (we ask that you please follow the hostesses in the first 2 spots (Mama to 4 Blessings & Home Grown Families.) Then leave us a quick comment letting us know you are following.

Then start blog hopping!

This is a great opportunity for you to visit other blogs on the link up and comment on their blogs! When people comment on your blog please let them know that you are part of Friday Blog Hop then return the favor and follow them back! Please feel free to grab our Friday Blog Hop button and add it to your blog and spread the word!

Please only enter your MAIN blog link and please G rated links ONLY - NO CURSING please. Home Grown Families and Mama to 4 Blessings are family friendly blogs.

This week's featured guest hostess is: Judy H - J's Thoughts 

Please also follow this week's Featured Guest Hostess: Judy H - J's Thoughts.  Each week a new featured blogger.  IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BECOMING A FEAUTRED GUEST HOSTESS PLEASE LEAVE ME A COMMENT WITH YOU INTEREST AND INCLUDE YOUR BLOG LINK AND E-MAIL ADDRESS.

I LOVE THIS CUTE KEY-RING!

        In my room there are several key-rings that Janine and I received as gifts over the years. Instead of having keys on them they are hanging around as decorations.  Among my birthday gifts this year is this cute key-ring. Note the red bag! It had goodies for me - delicious chocolate sweets with nuts inside.

         A big thank you to my Italian friend Robby. For many years she was Janine's pen-pal. Since Janine's death we have kept in touch via emails and have also had many interesting chats via MSN, Google Talk and Yahoo Messenger.  I know Janine would also love this key-ring. I will certainly treasure it.

BIRTHDAY FOOD DELIGHTS

       Although my birthday was Friday, November 4, my family decided that we would get together for a special lunch and ice-cream and cake last Sunday. Of course my lunch had to include favourites that Janine and I have had over the years - roast chicken with stuffing, rice and peas, macaroni and cheese, vegetable salad (carrots, cabbage and tomatoes) and baked potatoes. I enjoyed the meal which was very delicious.  Here is a picture  of it before I managed to have it all!:)

        We just love macaroni and cheese and have had it in a variety of ways. For my birthday lunch we had a macaroni and cheese casserole. You can see the recipe for this casserole in an earlier post A MACARONI & CHEESE DELIGHT.  Below is  a picture of it after it was baked last Sunday:

         I could not have my ice-cream and cake until after 4 p.m. It included my mom's home-made chocolate ice-cream.

BIRD BIRTHDAY TREAT!

       Over the years Janine and I have always had bird calendars.  Each month we looked forward to seeing the bird of the month.  I am so pleased with the bird birthday treat that I got this year. For November I am greeted by this beautiful picture of the Waxwing on the calendar in my bedroom.

            We appreciated all the gifts we received and got a special thrill when there was yet another bird figurine for our huge collection. This year I got this figurine from my family. I like the fact that 2 birds are on it!:)

              Of course there are persons who know how much we love birds so at times we would get a card featuring a bird or two. This year I got this beautiful card from an English friend Janet:

       These all helped to lift my spirit. Oh, I should not forget the added lift I got as I stood on  my veranda and saw a flock of  birds passing. I had my digital camera but did not manage to get them in time. Anyway there will be a next time. Birds give one a sense of freedom!

MY FIRST BIRTHDAY AS A BLOGGER

       This is my first birthday since I became a Blogger. I have met so many wonderful persons since I started Blogging and you have all helped me so much.  One of these persons is cheerfulnuts who has a great Blog - Cheerfulnuts.  She is one of twins and her sister's name is seriousnuts who has a Blog titled The Personal Blog of seriousnuts. She drew this special card for me on her Blog with the following message:-"I drew this picture as a present to a set of twins, Judy and Janine, whom I have never met. The picture shows Judy sending a bird to Janine, her deceased twin, with a birthday present. They're wearing matching clothes, like what they used to do while Janine was still living. I want to wish my Blogger friend Judy and her twin sister in heaven, Janine, a happy happy birthday!" Thanks a million cheerfulnuts. You certainly know how strong the twin bond is and you have brightened my day.
         To everyone who has supported me by becoming Followers, writing comments, sharing advice, visiting my Blog, sharing awards, providing a wide variety of posts for me to read, Blog Hops to participate in and so much more I say:
                          

THURSDAY FAVOURITE THINGS BLOG HOP - MY FAVOURITE BIRTHDAY MEMORY

    Janine and I were born on November 4. This is another birthday that she won't be with me physically but I know she will be with me in spirit. Over the years we enjoyed celebrating our birthday with our family. At times we would journey to various parts of our island,Jamaica. 
      As I think about a favourite birthday celebration I think Janine would agree that it was the celebration of our 21st birthday at the Trident Hotel in the parish of Portland. 
      When one visits  this parish one can see why it is renown for its beauty as the eyes are graced with lush green vegetation and the picturesque John Crow mountains.  It is also the home of the Blue Lagoon and Somerset and Reach Falls. 
     A must for many tourists is rafting on the Rio Grande. In addition it is a haven for those who love hiking and bird watching. One can also enjoy wonderful beaches and coves. It is no surprise therefore that it has been a popular tourist resort for famous writers and movie stars like Errol Flynn and Ian Fleming. 

          As bird enthusiasts we were thrilled to see birds there especially peacocks. It is only a pity that I did not get a picture of this bird boasting its beautiful tail.

  

 I take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Katherine from Katherine's Corner for choosing me to be the co-host this week. Katherine I am glad I met you in the Blogging world and you have helped me to focus on good times as I approach another birthday without my twin.   

Thursdays Favorite Things Hop is where you can link up your favorite post to share with old and new followers!
Here are the rules, yes there are rules. But just a few:
You must follow Katherines Corner. If you’re a new follower, please let her know and she'll follow back. Please also follow my blog too before you start hopping.
Leave a comment when you follow so we all know you stopped by.
No adult content blogs.
Blogs only please.
Follow as many other blogs in the list as you can. Just click and go.
Leave a sincere comment or message on each of the blogs you visit and follow so they know you stopped by.
Now hop on and lets share our favorites. If you’d like to post this blog hop on your page please just grab the linky code . Or if you would like to be a co-host please contact Katherine.


Please grab the hop button to share with others, you can copy and paste the image with a link to KatherinesCorner.com OR grab the code from Katherines Corner. It is on her blog's right sidebar.
It’s always nice to have the hop button on the post you link up.But it is NOT mandatory.

DELICIOUS JAMAICAN PATTIES

     Over the years a very important food item for Janine and me were Jamaican patties. When we were young we looked forward to our mom coming home with some delicious home-made patties made by a lady named Mrs. Thelma McCalla. Since then I have eaten many patties from different outlets but in recent years our favourites have been Juici beef Patties. I eat them almost every week.
      These days there are a wide variety of patties - beef, chicken, cheese, vegetables, lobster, shrimp, soy etc. I have eaten the beef and chicken ones and they taste great.  If you want to have an idea how to make a Jamaican patty check out Jamaican Recipes:JAMAICA BEEF PATTY. Below is a picture of 2 Juici beef Patties just before I devoured them!:)

SO GOOD TO BE INSPIRED!

      A few days ago I opened my kitchen window just before 6 in the morning here in Jamaica.  The sun was coming up and I saw the view featured below. There is just something about it that made me run for my digital camera! Here are 3 of the shots:

      Shortly afterwards  I saw an awesome Facebook status by another twinless twin, Frances Quinn. I immediately asked her if I could share it here as it has lifted my spirit so much as I face a  birthday later this week without my twin sister.  If you have also lost a relative or known someone who died from cancer I hope it helps you also:
     "What Cancer Cannot Do" - "Cancer is limited... It cannot cripple love. It cannot shatter hope. It cannot corrode faith. It cannot eat away peace. It cannot destroy confidence. It cannot kill friendship. It cannot shut out memories. It cannot quench the spirit. It cannot silence courage. It cannot reduce eternal life."

A FACEBOOK FAN PAGE AT LAST!

I have had a Facebook Profile for almost 3 years. Today I decided to take it to another level and start a Facebook Fan Page for this Blog -Judy H-J's Thoughts - a Twinless Twin I have seen a lot of Bloggers with Facebook Fan Pages and even liked many of them. I welcome anyone who wants to follow and let me know so that I can follow you back. If you wish I would also be happy to hear from those who have Fan Pages as to how they have benefitted from having one.

GOOD LUCK AGAIN!

      I won my first Blog giveaway recently and now I have won round #27 in a raffle at Writing.Com and received some well needed gift points.  The Power Reviewers group is an awesome group and we had a wonderful time reviewing poems, short stories etc. in this month's raid. They really rock and I am happy to be a member. 


      Below is a picture of a personal signature that was given to me by a member called Breaker.  He chose 2 birds that he said represent my twin and me.  I like the idea of us heading towards a rainbow!:) For more details about this you can see a post that I published in my early days of Blogging titled A WONDERFUL BIRD SURPRISE