The Great Christmas Bowl

Welcome!

2009-09-21T10:03:00.020-05:00

I love Christmas. I can’t help it – I love everything from the holiday shows, to the never-ending songs to the cookie baking contest our family has on Christmas Eve. I love the kids toddling forth in their jammies with joy on Christmas morning. I love Christmas dinner – turkey and all the trimmings. I long ago surrendered Thanksgiving to my in-laws….so Christmas is my victory dance, where I embrace mom-hood and everything about it.

However, last Christmas, I realized that too soon it would all end. It happened the day my oldest son, age 17, appeared in our annual Christmas show as Daddy Warbucks. Shaved head and all, he looked about six foot four in his tuxedo, all grown up, and I burst into tears. I had one year left of our Christmas festivities. Then, I knew, we’d begin negotiations. What if they wanted to spend Christmas… in Vail or something? With his chums? What if my daughter elected to visit…a boyfriend in some remote town in Nebraska…at Christmas? I saw my memories slipping away.

I also love football. I longed to have my sons in the game, to bundle up in the stands with a stadium blanket and a thermos of hot cocoa. Alas, the football gene bypassed my oldest…and my youngest son. Thankfully, it landed on my middle child…and he embraced football with the passion I’d hoped for. He made his high school varsity team in eighth grade. (proud mother moment here). I never miss a game. I might be a little fanatical.

That Christmas, when I realized it would all end, our family took sick…and for eight days over Christmas, I made soup and handed out Vicks…and conjured up a book about the crazy things mothers do, the looming threat (and joy) of empty nests and the universal desire to create memories for our children. I live in a small town, so of course, I had to write about the crazy, wonderful small town Minnesota life. (Go Big Lake Trouts!) Yes, it’s a mother book. (But did I mention it also has FOOTBALL in it?) It’s also a book about reclaiming romance after the kids are grown, and discovering that all your years of investing in your children do bear fruit.

I am overjoyed at this story; this holiday tale of my heart. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and that it brings to you some of the flavor and magic of your childhood…and perhaps the delightful memories of Christmases with your family.

Contact

2009-07-30T18:07:00.003-05:00

Please contact Amy Lathrop with any questions, problems or concerns!

GCB@susanmaywarren.com

Thank you for participating!

For more information about Susan May Warren, please visit her website, www.susanmaywarren.com!

You can also find Susan at Facebook and on twitter!

Host Your Own Tea

2009-07-30T17:56:00.015-05:00

Do something DIFFERENT this Holiday!

So, I love Christmas (I think this fact has been firmly established). But I also love those fun Christmas teas that we have at church, school, and the many that I speak at every year. Great fun! But I’ll never forget the day I invited a woman in my community to our church Christmas Tea and she said… “Oh, I couldn’t go. I wouldn’t fit in.” It made me wonder just why we have our Christmas teas. Hear me: it’s a great thing to break bread together, to fellowship with food. And if that’s the purpose, then hallelujah and pass the cheesy potatoes. But when we have events with the purpose of reaching out, then….well, we need to think of our audience. It was this thought that sat in the back of my mind as I wrote The Great Christmas Bowl.

If I had my way, I’d just write books for charity. (Seriously, maybe after I get the kids through college!). I feel so blessed to use my love for writing to encourage people to see God’s grace in their lives. Like Eric Liddell – I feel the pleasure of God when I write.

But I’d like to give back. So…

Here’s my idea.

Let’s use the GCB to reach out to our community. (Read an amazing story about one woman who was already inspired to reach out to her community and make a difference!)

Host your own Great Christmas bowl!

Here’s some ideas how:

1. Read The Great Christmas Bowl with your local women’s ministry group.

2. Then host a Great Christmas Bowl event/fundraiser (ie, a soup kitchen/tea!) at your own church or community center to raise money for your local homeless shelter, crisis pregnancy center, family support services. (Choose one (or maybe even two) organizations for your Tea to fund.)

3. To raise money, check with your local bookstore or favorite internet retailer and ask for a bulk discount for The Great Christmas Bowl. I have also included a link to order here via CBD.COM in case you want to act now! Then just send a quick email to GCB@susanmaywarren.com and let us know how many books you ordered and where to send your bookplates!

I will provide book plates for your books to sell at the standard price – your proceeds go to your charity!

4. Use the attached Invite to send to your church, your community, your neighbors, friends, acquaintances…even, strangers. Download Christmas Bowl Invite

When you sign up to host your own Great Christmas Bowl, this is what you'll get.
~ A 10 minute devotional video from Susan May Warren to play during the Tea, on CD rom, or via download.

~ Signed book plates

~Recipe for The Great Christmas Bowl Soup

~Discussion Questions to get people talking at your tea via email.

~Download The Great Christmas Bowl_Flyer

Join Me and Marianne and Host your Own Great Christmas Bowl!

Share your Favorite Christmas Story and Recipe!

Do you have a favorite Christmas Story? How about a favorite family recipe? Share your memories with the Great Christmas Bowl family! Click here to submit your story and recipe, and YOUR post will be featured here, on the GCB blog! Then, download the entire recipe book at the GCB Tea Party, Saturday December 5th!

Soup’s On!

House Rules

2009-07-30T17:56:00.006-05:00

Story and Recipe Share House Rules

Whether this is your first time on-line or you’re a seasoned Internet user, we require respect and good manners from everyone when participating in The Great Christmas Bowl. Please look over our House Rules, use common sense, be respectful and share your story.

The Great Christmas Bowl is not intended as an outlet for personal attacks and destructive postings.

All users are required to adhere to the following “House Rules.” If we become aware that a user has violated the House Rules, that user’s post may be immediately and permanently removed, without warning or other notice.

Post at Your Own Risk
You participate at your own risk at The Great Christmas Bowl. You take responsibility for postings under your identification and use the information you provide at your own risk. Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com takes no responsibility for the content, stories or recipes posted.

All Posts Are Subject to Review
While we are not obligated to do so, we reserve the right to accept, reject, remove or edit any postings at our discretion, including those that are off the subject, not in English or that contain personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity, impersonations, third party links or that violate the The Great Christmas Bowl House Rules.

Abide by Our Rules
By posting to any portion of Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com you agree to abide by the House Rules.

No Obscene or Hateful Language
Obscene, profane, racist or sexually explicit language will not be tolerated. You may not harass, defame or threaten another person. We do not allow stories that defame or insult anyone, nor comments that are abusive or hateful. All postings must be truthful to the best of your ability and may not be false or misleading.

No Solicitations or Advertisements
You may not post any content for commercial purposes, including, but not limited to advertisements, business opportunities or charity solicitations.

No External Links
In an effort to provide a safe online experience on Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com, posting of URLs or links is prohibited. This includes spelling out a URL such as “www dot website dot info” (or any such variation).

No Illegal Activity
You may not suggest or encourage illegal or violent activity. Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com will aid law enforcement agencies.

All Materials Must Be Copyrighted or Sited
All stories/recipes must be original and your own. Please review the terms and conditions. All articles, recipes, song lyrics, art or graphics must be your own and not previously copyrighted by someone else. By posting such information, you represent and warrant that you are the exclusive license holder with the express right to post the information on this site or are the exclusive license holder. IF you do post a recipe belonging to someone else - YOU MUST STATE the SOURCE (name, book or website) with the recipe.

No Personal Information
For your safety and privacy, please do not post personal information such as phone numbers, addresses, social security numbers, last names or any other private information.

Age Requirement
Online safety is of utmost importance at Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com. For this reason, you must be 16 years old or older to participate. Any posts from someone who is under that age will be removed. If you are under the age of 18, you should obtain parental consent before participating in The Great Christmas Bowl.

Post Only Once
Please do not post the same story/recipe more than once.

Report a Problem
If you feel that someone in your discussion on The Great Christmas Bowl is behaving in an inappropriate manner, please let us know. Send an e-mail via the contact page at Thegreatchristmasbowl.blogspot.com and a staff member will look into the problem.

Latest News from Big Lake Gazette

2009-07-30T17:39:00.015-05:00

Buy the cook book and help those in need!

If I could, I’d just write for charity –there are so many needy people and causes out there! But until I get my kids through college, I’m going to have to just help out where I can. If you’ve been following along at The Great Christmas Bowl website – you know about the contest we’ve been running for the last few months. People have been sharing their favorite recipes and memories – love reading all the stories! They’ve really captured the spirit of the Great Christmas Bowl. And to continue the celebration, and marry that with a desire to reach out, we’ve turned those posts into a downloadable e-cookbook that is available to purchase for $5! 100% of the money raised will be going to the Cook County (my community) Food Shelf, and The Grand Marais Salvation Army Service Unit’s “Merry Christmas for all” Outreach Program. It’s a local program for our community of 1300 that helped 55 families last year “multiply the joy of Christmas” by providing food and gifts to the financially challenged.

The book will be available all month long – so tell your friends to swing by and purchase a copy and help spread the joy of the season!

To purchase – click here

You’ll receive an email with the link to download the pdf.

If you’d like to pay by mail, send a check to:

Susan May Warren
PO Box 1290
Grand Marais, MN 55604

And please include your email address

When we get your check, I’ll send you the confirmation letter with the pdf. link!

Thank you for helping me reach out to the needy in my community!

~~~

Don't Miss the Christmas Outreach Tea on December 5th!

Join the Fun!

Join me for a little pre-Christmas festivities on Facebook! In the tradition of The Great Christmas Bowl I’m hosting an Outreach Christmas Tea on Facebook December 5th! I’ll be sharing some of my favorite holiday recipes, Christmas tunes, and chatting with you about your plans for Christmas.

As always, there will be prizes and a sneak peak at my two new books Sons of Thunder and the latest PJ Sugar novel, Double Trouble. And of course outreach! If you’ve been following along at The Great Christmas Bowl website – you know about the contest we’ve been running for the last few months. People have been sharing their favorite recipes and memories and we’ll be turning that into a downloadable cookbook that will be available to purchase during the party for $5! 100% of the money raised will be going to the Cook County (my community) Food Shelf, and The Grand Marais Salvation Army Service Unit’s “Merry Christmas for all” Outreach Program. It’s a local program for our community of 1300 that helped 55 families last year “multiply the joy of Christmas” by providing food and gifts to the financially challenged.

The book will be available all month long – so tell your friends to swing by and purchase a copy and help spread the joy of the season! Hope to see you at the party! Oh, and help us spread the word by inserting this button on your blog or website! (just copy the code from the box & insert into your website/blog sidebar)

~~~

Catch Susan's latest interview with Jill Hart!

Susan talks about why she wrote The Great Christmas Bowl, her family and their Christmas traditions!

Listen Here

~~~

The Great Christmas Bowl Inspires Outreach!

Letter to The Editor:

I am so new to Susan May Warren's writings, but my first experience with 'The Great Christmas Bowl' has resulted life changing events.

Mimicking Susan's character ( Marianne) and the ultimate Soup Kitchen Tea, my mission partner and friend have plans in motion to host a marathon Tie blanket making event.

The blankets, scarves and wraps are going to the families of McDowell County West Virginia to provide a bit of Christmas to these neighbors of ours. McDowell in located in the Appalachian mountains and one of the poorest, most indigent counties in the US.

For the details on McDowell, watch this powerful video!

God is blessing this little blanket ministry and especially this project with folks around the WORLD wanting to get on board spreading joy and Jesus to McDowell.

Sorry to go on and on but as a result of 'The Great Christmas Bowl' we now have planned a marathon 'Flock Party' otherwise known as a Blanket making event - with hundreds of yards of fleece being worked while we are inviting our community and those hundreds of members who are committed to F4F to come enjoy a 'Soup Kitchen' at the cost of $1 a bowl or a can good. Proceeds from this event will go to our local Church on the Street and food pantry.

We also have a new recording artist that has allowed us to utilize a wonderful song of hers 'We Can Be the Hope' that was used on the promotional video (above) aimed at educating the masses on this need on our very shores.

We expect to have lot's of live music (including Heather) table set for at least 500, personal & purposeful hand written notes and letters to the McDowell residents in hopes that relationships will be formed and these families will know we mean this to be more than drop 500 blankets and run. We desire nothing more but for to God use these gifts to spread the hope of Jesus to our neighbors in this nearby community.

If you have not stopped reading:
What her story has sparked is nothing but miraculous, God is all over it!

Tammy
http://gratefulinga.blogspot.com/

~~~

Christmas card from Marianne…

Merry Christmas from the Wallace family!

It’s amazing how fast the year rushes by! Again the trees are iced in snow, and twinkling lights adorn the shops of our little town of Big Lake. I can’t believe Kevin is already a senior, the last of the Wallaces to leave our nest. Of course, our big event of the season was Neil’s marriage to Anya (picture enclosed). Brett also moved away from Minneapolis to the big city of Chicago for his new job (you’ll have to ask him what he does). Amy emails nearly every day from London, where she is taking her graduate classes. Of course, we’re thankful Brianna opted to stay in Minneapolis after her graduation last year. We’ll be glad to see them all home for Christmas!

The big news is that Kevin is playing football for the Big Lake Trouts (Go Trouts!) His team is poised to take the division championships. Mike and I attend every game (of course, he’s in his ambulance – it’s good to have medical care so close by). I know it’s going to be a championship season playoff, if the Trouts can just manage to work on their passing defense.

Of course, we’re also thankful for the birth of our Savior this holiday season that reminds us of the great gift of sacrifice God gave to us. May we all learn the meaning of giving.

Hope you have a wonderful season with your loved ones,
Marianne and Mike Wallace, for the Wallace family

~~~

Dear Big Lake Gazette Editor:

It’s come to my attention that Marianne Wallace has agreed to play the role of the Big Lake mascot during this championship season. I know the Trouts are in need of a cheering section, but the coach can’t be serious. What happened to Bud Finlayson? And certainly she is plenty busy planning the upcoming Big Lake Community Church Christmas Tea. A woman her age should act it, right? I wonder at whether Marianne Wallace really knows what she’s getting herself into…this could end up being a real whopper.

Signed,
Concerned in Big Lake

Share your Favorite Christmas Story and Recipe!

Do you have a favorite Christmas Story? How about a favorite family recipe? Share your memories with the Great Christmas Bowl family! Click here to submit your story and recipe, and YOUR post will be featured here, on the GCB blog! Then, download the entire recipe book at the GCB Tea Party, Saturday December 5th!

Soup’s On!

Recipe Exchange

2009-07-30T07:19:00.005-05:00

I love getting recipes from friends, and sharing the delicious cookies, soups, breads and other fun fixings that go with celebrating the Christmas season. More than that, we all have crazy stories about favorite Christmases – serious, touching, funny…whatever.

Will you share your story and recipe with me and the readers of the Great Christmas Bowl? We will post your story and recipe on the FRONT PAGE of the blog, and send you a link when it goes up so you can tell all your friends. Then, at our Great Christmas Bowl party (December 5th, 10am, online! Details TBA) we’ll make the entire cookbook available for download!

For every recipe/story you submit (up to 3), you will be entered in a drawing to receive one of SMW’s collections (Noble Legacy, Team Hope, Heirs of Anton, Deep Haven Series, Josey series, or THE ADVANCED COPY of Sons of Thunder – Susie’s brand new epic World War 2 novel, due out in January 2010!)

Be a part of the Great Christmas Bowl recipe exchange!

Go – run, get your recipe, then come back here and click on the link below to share your Christmas memories!

RECIPE EXCHANGE - SUBMIT NOW!

Test Post

2009-07-22T23:03:00.000-05:00

Testing. Testing, testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out.Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out. Testing. Testing testing it out.

The rest of the story...

2009-07-15T15:38:00.001-05:00

I also love football. I longed to have my sons in the game, to bundle up in the stands with a stadium blanket and a thermos of hot cocoa. Alas, the football gene bypassed my oldest…and my youngest son. Thankfully, it landed on my middle child…and he embraced football with the passion I’d hoped for. He made his high school varsity team in eighth grade. (proud mother moment here). I never miss a game. I might be a little fanatical.

That Christmas, when I realized it would all end, our family took sick…and for eight days over Christmas, I made soup and handed out Vicks…and conjured up a book about the crazy things mothers do, the looming threat (and joy) of empty nests and the universal desire to create memories for our children. I live in a small town, so of course, I had to write about the crazy, wonderful small town Minnesota life. (Go Big Lake Trouts!) Yes, it’s a mother book. (But did I mention it also has FOOTBALL in it?) It’s also a book about reclaiming romance after the kids are grown, and discovering that all your years of investing in your children do bear fruit.

I am overjoyed at this story; this holiday tale of my heart. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and that it brings to you some of the flavor and magic of your childhood…and perhaps the delightful memories of Christmases with your family.

Share your Favorite Christmas Story and Recipe!

Do you have a favorite Christmas Story? How about a favorite family recipe? Share your memories with the Great Christmas Bowl family! Click here to submit your story and recipe, and YOUR post will be featured here, on the GCB blog! Then, download the entire recipe book at the GCB Tea Party, Saturday December 5th!

Soup’s On!

The Great Christmas Bowl Inspires Outreach!

2009-07-15T14:13:00.000-05:00

This is so cool ...

Letter to The Editor:

I am so new to Susan May Warren's writings, but my first experience with 'The Great Christmas Bowl' has resulted life changing events.

Mimicking Susan's character ( Marianne) and the ultimate Soup Kitchen Tea, my mission partner and friend have plans in motion to host a marathon Tie blanket making event.

The blankets, scarves and wraps are going to the families of McDowell County West Virginia to provide a bit of Christmas to these neighbors of ours. McDowell in located in the Appalachian mountains and one of the poorest, most indigent counties in the US.

For the details on McDowell, watch this powerful video!

God is blessing this little blanket ministry and especially this project with folks around the WORLD wanting to get on board spreading joy and Jesus to McDowell.

Sorry to go on and on but as a result of 'The Great Christmas Bowl' we now have planned a marathon 'Flock Party' otherwise known as a Blanket making event - with hundreds of yards of fleece being worked while we are inviting our community and those hundreds of members who are committed to F4F to come enjoy a 'Soup Kitchen' at the cost of $1 a bowl or a can good. Proceeds from this event will go to our local Church on the Street and food pantry.

We also have a new recording artist that has allowed us to utilize a wonderful song of hers 'We Can Be the Hope' that was used on the promotional video (above) aimed at educating the masses on this need on our very shores.

We expect to have lot's of live music (including Heather) table set for at least 500, personal & purposeful hand written notes and letters to the McDowell residents in hopes that relationships will be formed and these families will know we mean this to be more than drop 500 blankets and run. We desire nothing more but for to God use these gifts to spread the hope of Jesus to our neighbors in this nearby community.

If you have not stopped reading:
What her story has sparked is nothing but miraculous, God is all over it!

Tammy
http://gratefulinga.blogspot.com/

Play List

2009-06-01T15:13:00.000-05:00