Reflections

Ok, first of all, I never thought that I would use the word "reflection" again in my life but here I am using it as the title of a blog entry. Let me explain why I had that thought. When you are an education major, you hear that word millions of times and you have to reflect on everything millions of times. By the time I graduated, I had begun to dislike that word very much! But, I am going to reflect on 2008. If I come up with something really interesting, I will share it with you! As of right now, I just can not believe that 2008 was over. This year has really gone by quickly. Things that I thought or hoped would happen didn't but I know that there is a reason for this. I just have to wait and see what God has in his plans and let my plans go. I have definately learned that even though I think that my plans are perfect, God's are better for me even if I don't understand it. As I am writing this, Mrs. H. and I are having a facebook chat so I ask her about the words of a song that really says it all about our plans versus God's plans. Part of the chorus says, "And if you wanna hear God laugh, tell him your plans." Why don't we ever understand this? Well, that is all the reflecting I am going to do tonight.
Happy New Year!

Update

Just wanted to let those of you who have been keeping up with Ms. Kitty, I have a quick update. My honey and I went to visit with her parents today. She still has a long way to go. She has congestive heart failure and fluid on her lungs. They still have her heavily sedated and hope to take her off of the ventilator tomorrow. The great news is that her skin grafts are doing really well. Please continue to keep Ms. Kitty in your prayers. I told her mom that she had people in blogland praying for her also.

Happy New Year.

Sit back and relax

Well, the hustle and bustle is over and now you can sit back, sip a cup of cocoa, relax and reflect on what the past year has brought to you. I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and are planning on a Happy New Year.

I want to wish everyone a very

It's coming. . . . .

It is almost here! Are you ready yet? We are done. We had our last Christmas on Monday.

Memories

Today is the one year anniversary of the day our sweet baby boy was born asleep. It is hard to believe that it has been an entire year. We had such hopes and dreams for our little one. He would have been 8 months old for this, his first Christmas. We pray that one day God will grant us our wish of having children.

Tis the season

Today we had Christmas with my Dad's side of the family. It was nice to get together and see everyone. We had a really good lunch. My sister and her family are here so it will be nice to spend time with them. We will have our family Christmas with them on Monday. Hopefully I will get my Christmas tree decorated and my cards out soon (like tomorrow!).

Merry Christmas Ya'll.

Good Times

Ok, first off I am going to stop the countdown. Everyone knows that Christmas is almost here so I will stop the torture!
Tonight was the Christmas party at Mr. & Mrs. H's house. We had a lot of good food, good fellowship and a good time (and some interesting white elephant gifts!). We saw friends who have moved away but came back for the party (we have been doing this for several years now and a good time is always had). Thank you Mr. and Mrs. H for a wonderful evening. We are so glad that we didn't miss it this year. We still can't believe that we (the ones who are always late) were the first ones to arrive (and the last to leave:)!) I promise to get my dip recipe posted soon if you will post your bacon bites recipe.
Ms. Kitty update: we found out tonight that she has pnuemonia. They had taken out her breathing tube but had to put it back in and she is in a lot of pain. They were supposed to take off the bandages to see how the skin grafts were doing today. Please keep up the prayers. I hope to write her a letter in the next few days and to let her know about her blogland prayer friends.
Merry Christmas Ya'll!

Only 7 more days OH MY!

One Christmas party down, one more to go! Tonight was my honey's work party. The food was good but we didn't stay long. We are looking forward to tomorrow night's party at Mrs. H's house. We really missed not being able to go to last years party. We would have much rather been at the party than in the hospital.

I want to wish my friends Brock and Felicia a very Happy Anniversary! I remember how lovely your wedding was!

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

And the days just keep flying by!

I have finally begun my Christmas cards. I haven't gotten very far but I have started and isn't that what is important? I only have one more person to finish shopping for and then I am done! Well, I told my honey that I would go find some things for myself because I just don't know what I want this year.
My friend Ms. Kitty had her first surgery today. They found that the burns went much deeper than the doctors originally thought. She will be in the hospital for 4 months and will endure several surgeries. The doctors also told her father that she has an 85% chance of leaving the hospital. Please keep Ms. Kitty in your prayers. She has a very difficult road ahead of her.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

It's the final countdown. . . .10 more days!

Well, I noticed before I started this post that I have already done 50 posts. Wow, I didn't realize that I had that much to bore people with! I do hope that no one has fallen asleep from boredom while reading this and fallen out of their chair and hurt themselves! If you have, I apologize and I hope you are recovering from your accident.
Oh my, it has gotten really cold again. The thermometer says that it is 29 outside and 57 inside. Yesterday it was 79. I think that our cows are really confused! It is funny to think that last night I was sitting on my front porch staining some wood for Christmas presents in shorts, tshirt and flipflops and tonight I am sitting in the house in long pants, a sweater and closed in shoes and I am freezing!
Ok, we have 10 more days until Christmas and I am so not ready. I had planned on having things done early and why not, I am not working but things haven't turned out as planned (they usually don't). I haven't decorated my Christmas tree, haven't started my Christmas cards, haven't done any baking or finished the gifts for my husband's co-workers. I am telling myself that it will get done and will be ok. I will not stress, I will not stress, I will not stress.
It is hard to believe that one year ago today I walked across the stage and finally received my college diploma. Wow, what a topsy turvy year this has been.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

11 more days and. . . .

I had better get a move on! Tonight I finished staining 13 blocks of wood to finish up the Christmas presents my honey needs for his co-workers. I am getting ready to finish up my Christmas letter so I can get crackin on my cards. Tomorrow my honey has a list of things he needs me to get for him and tomorrow night I am going to my little sis's house for a girls night. I am excited about that. The end of the week starts a three day marathon of Christmas parties. We get to see the niece and nephew on Saturday. Yippee!!!
On a very serious note, a very special lady that attends my church was burned in a kitchen fire last week. She will have her first surgery on Tuesday to remove her clothing that was burned into her skin. Please keep Ms. Kitty in your prayers that her surgeries are successful and her recovery is quick.

Merry Christmas Ya'll.

14 and Counting

What a difference a day makes. When I got up this morning there was still snow on the ground and it still looked awesome. I took a few more pictures of my yard, the pastures around my house, my G-mom's house, my parent's place and the snowman my mom built to show my niece and nephew! It really was special to get snow in December, well, the get snow at all and so much of it. But now it is all gone and I think everyone around has got pictures for souvenirs. It sure was cool (well, cold!) while it lasted!!
I did some more subbing today. This was a group of VERY talkative 1st graders. I do not remember being so loud when I was a kid. I think it was because we were afraid (not really the right word but it works) of the teacher and when she/he told us to do something we did it. I was ready for the day to be over with and I was only there for 4 hours. I did get to see some of the kids who were in my class when I did my student teaching and it was really good to see them.
Tonight we picked up our Christmas tree which is a family event. We go with my parents and my sister and pick out our trees together. I can't wait to get it in the house and to start decorating. Maybe that will help with the holiday spirit! The one we got looks like it is going to be really pretty and full. I will take some pictures and post them soon. That is all for tonight. I am going to start my Christmas cards as I watch CSI and ER.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

There are only 15 days left!

Wow! Today was something we very rarely see in our part of the world. It SNOWED!! This is in the morning.
Getting ready to leave for a sub job. Snow, not ice everywhere!
The backyard and the back of the house.

These were from this afternoon amd evening. We still have about 2 inches on the ground.
My front yard.
The back yard.

Back yard.

Front of house.

Towards the road.

I am still not really in the holiday spirit but the snow did excite me. I am almost completely done with my Christmas shopping. Now I need to hit my Christmas cards.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!!

I hope you enjoy the pictures of what made a lot of people around here happy!!

16 days and counting

Well, I got more Christmas shopping done. I am ready to be done. I still have my mom and dad (they are the ones I still don't know what I am getting) and my in-laws but I know what I am getting, I just have to get it. Then there are just a few odds and ends.

This morning I watched my mom put my G-mom's Christmas tree and this evening I put up my outside Christmas lights (AGAIN). Now we are sitting in the house freezing because the wind is blowing at 26 mph with windgusts up to 32 mph. Well, in the morning I am sure that all of my Christmas lights will be back on the ground. That really irritates me. I love the cold weather but I hate the wind.

Yes, I know I still sound like Scrooge. I am TRYING to get in the holiday spirit!

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

17 days til Christmas. . . .

uugghh, that is scary. I am still not finished with my shopping but I am getting closer. I hope to have it finished by this weekend. Some of it has to be done because we celebrate our first Christmas this Saturday. We are celebrating with my honey's family but not only are we celebrating Christmas this weekend both in-laws have birthdays this month so that is an added gift buying thing. Next weekend we celebrate our 2nd Christmas with my G-mom and all my dad's family. Then there is Christmas with my family and then with my other G-mom and what ever family will be in town for that. Oh and I forgot about my honey's work party. Atleast I don't have to buy a gift for that one. Well, I know that I am sounding like a scrooge and I apologize. I am just not in the holiday spirit and can't seem to get there.

I hope that you are more in the holiday spirit than I am.

Merry Christmas Ya'll.

Something new to play with. . . .

About two weeks ago our big printer died. I really liked that printer because it was a work horse and it was color. I used it for my church work and then it died. I had been using my honey's black and white printer but it stopped working correctly for me so I had to resort to my little copy/scanner/printer. It was so slow. We got a new 4 in 1 printer and my honey is getting it hooked up. I can't wait to use it!

How is your Christmas shopping going? I am getting closer and closer to being finished. I had hoped to finish up most of it today by going to a local craft show. Well, that was a huge waste of time so I hope to get finished really soon!

Well, that is all for now.

Merry Christmas ya'll!!

All I want for Christmas is . . . . .

uuuhhhggg, I really don't know. My honey keeps asking me but I don't know what to tell him. We went shopping on Friday but I still didn't come up with anything. Hopefully I will come up with something soon.

In case you are wondering about the date on this one, I started it Thursday so it is a little off!

We did it!

Thanks to my mommy, my house was clean and decorated for the party. I of course wasn't ready when the guest got here. I was in the bathroom putting on my makeup and blow drying my hair. Oh well, a good time was had by all (atleast I think they did). The gift I ended up with was the cutest little night light. It is a fireplace and the light bulb is one of those flicker bulbs. It is cute. Actually, all of the gifts were cute. Ms. H was a real go getter and stole gifts several times but she always did it with a smile. Ms. H's sister-in-law was also pretty quick at stealing especially from Ms. H!! :) Oh, and the food was good too!! Well, that is all for now. I am pooped from the frantic cleaning and decorating!

Merry Christmas ya'll!!

December already

My oh my, where has the past year gone? It is so hard to believe that this time last year I was finishing up my student teaching and just weeks away from graduating. This year I am currently in panic mode as I try to get my house cleaned up for the ladies Christmas party I am hosting tomorrow night (oooh, that sounds so grown up! Hosting a party!!). For those of you who know me, know that I am not really organized and would much rather be outside than in the house cleaning. Now I am having to really work to get everything put together. Another factor in the house cleaning is that first and foremost, I collect things. A lot of things and secondly, our house does not have much storage space. We live in my great grandmothers house that is over 70 years old. It is 3 bedroom and only has 3 very small closets and one of those is in the bathroom. I try to creatively store things but it doesn't always work. This time my creativity has spread out. Literally, I am storing non essential items in the garage apartment next door. Now, you may be wondering, what about the people that live there? Well, it is currently empty and the big closet in it is perfect for all of my (our) junk!!! Just don't tell my grandmother that I now have stuff everywhere!!! One thing that I have that I would love to get rid of is all of the excess computer stuff that we have accumulated over the years. What do you do with old computers and scanners when you don't need or use them anymore? Anyway, once I get this house finished up, I will be ready to start (finish really) decorating for Christmas. The decor for the party will be very simple but after that, you just don't know what I might do. My honey thinks that I am related to the Griswalds! Well, that might be true. You should see how awesome my mommy's house looks this time of the year. Well, I had better go so I can do more house work. I hope that each of you are enjoying this time of the year. We all get stressed (well, I assume we all do anyway) but we need to remember what is most important about this time of the year. I look forward to seeing everyone's pics of their decor and their memories, wishes and whatever else is shared.

Merry Christmas ya'll!

As we wrap up November

I hope that each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your loved ones. We were able to see many of our family members.

I can't believe that it is almost December. Christmas is just around the corner.

Have a great day!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Tuesday Tidbits

ONE MONTH TIL CHRISTMAS!!!

Oh, where to start. . . .I guess I will go back to last Friday. Friday I subbed for a 3rd grade teacher that I met while subbing across the hall from her. This was a difficult class; by the time 12:30 rolled around there had been 2, count them 2 confrontations between students and 1 fight. Needless to say, I was glad for the day to be over. To add to that, I was starting to feel crummy. That evening was fun because my parental unit, sister and I were invited by a family from church to dinner and games at their home. My honey was invited too but he was at the doctors office until 9:45 that evening. No, he wasn't sick. Our doctor has a practice that doesn't take appointments so you are going to have a wait anyway but this particular night our doctor was the only doctor on-call in the emergency room at the hospital where his office is. Needless to say it was a busy night for the doc. Anyway, we had a really good time learning a new game and eating yummy chili (made by the hostess) and homemade peach cobbler made by my mommy. It was yummy also.

Saturday, my honey had to go to work (who says that people in education don't work on weekends). I went to breakfast with the parental unit and my sister. We then decided to pop over to see our friends who are opening an Ace Hardware and see if there was anything we could do to help them (they are opening next Tuesday). We stayed and helped stock the home decor section. It was a lot of fun and they are going to have some really neat things. Then I came home and took a nap because I was still feeling crummy. But I did finish the 10 plagues!! Yippee.

Sunday was church and the last of the plagues. AND another nap because I was still feeling bad.
I hope I am not boring you yet!!

Monday I did a little Christmas shopping (I am ready to be done) and came home took a nap (are you seeing a pattern?). Then my sisterfriend L came over and we got some house work done for the Christmas party I am having next week.

Today, I got up and headed straight to the doctor's office. Ok, this is the 2nd time I have been in two weeks. The first time was to get my meds redone. Today was to find out what creepy crud I had picked up. Well, no surprise, I have bronchitis. I hope to get some sleep tonight with out the stuffy head, coughing, wheezing, etc that I have had the last few nights. I even got some more housework done but the best part of the day was when my husband baked the pies we are taking to his parents house for Thanksgiving. He made pumpkin and we decided to put my sweet potato casserole in a pie crust because it already tastes like dessert.

Now onto my new profile picture. Last week we were moving the cows and all of the babies were standing in a huddle. Well, that was until I started trying to get pictures of them. This is one of the cuties. I love having them around the house because I talk to them everytime I go outside (my neighbors probably think that I am a little crazy!). I will post a couple of the other pictures soon.


I hope you are all ready for Thanksgiving! It is almost here!!!

I learned something new!

Well, I finally learned how to download (or upload whatever it is) the pics off of my camera. Here are better pics of my Halloween decor. Hopefully I will get my Thanksgiving decor up before Thursday. I never did get the outside Halloween decor. Maybe next year. Well, that is all for tonight. I have a cold and I am ready for bed!!

Thursday ~ Giving Thanks

While thinking about what I was going to use for my last day of Kelli's Giving Thanks, I found two poems that said more than I ever could have and did a much better job of doing it. I hope you enjoy the poems and that you all have a wonderful holiday with your family.

HOW TO OBSERVE THANKSGIVING

Count your blessings instead of your crosses;

Count your gains instead of your losses.

Count your joys instead of your woes;

Count your friends instead of your foes.

Count your smiles instead of your tears;

Count your courage instead of your fears.

Count your full years instead of your lean;

Count your kind deeds instead of your mean.

Count your health instead of your wealth;

Count on God instead of yourself.

~~Author Unknown.~~~~~~~~~~

BE THANKFUL

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.

If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don't know something,

for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.

During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,

because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge,

because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes.

They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary,

because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things.

A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,

and they can become your blessings.

~~Author Unknown.~~

Thanksgiving Recipe

Today I decided to share my favorite Thanksgiving recipe. If you try this recipe, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Sweet Potato Casserole
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes - drained
3/4 stick of oleo
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp. cinnamon & nutmeg (I think I use pumpkin pie spice)
1 Tbsp. vanilla

Mix and bake at 450 degrees for 45 minutes.

Spread with a topping of:
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 stick oleo
1/2 cup pecans (I always add extra)
1 cup crushed post toasties (I have also used bran flakes)
Return to oven for a few minutes.

It's Tuesday and I am thankful for. . . .

the kindness of strangers. Today my mom and I went to Hobby Lobby because I needed a picture frame with the spots for pics that were not the same size. We looked and there wasn't anything that would work. Mom suggested that we just have a mat cut. When it was our turn to talk to the gentleman taking orders, we pulled out a picture and two poems that we needed the mat for. It has taken me a long time to get this particular thing taken care of, not because I didn't want to do it but because it would be hard. The gentleman measured the items we had given him and told him the size frame we were going to use. He then ask me what color I wanted to use. I began trying different colors, the photo is black and white and the poems are on peach colored paper. I began trying different colors and wasn't finding anything that I liked and as I did this, tears began to fall. You may be asking yourself why picking a mat color could bring me to tears. Well, it wasn't having to choose a color, it was about what was going into the frame. You see, it was two poems, one to daddy from child and the other one was to mommy from child and the picture is of our precious baby boy who was born with angel wings almost a year ago (the picture and poems were given to us by the hospital). Well, the gentleman was able to cut the mat while we waited and as he came out from the back he had a strange look on his face. He came around the counter, put his arm around me and told me that he had been through the same thing and walked off (he didn't even charge us for the mat). It is amazing how when you are at a point in your life that you think no one can possibly understand what you are going through, someone comes by gives you a hug and reminds you that you are not alone in your struggle. So, a huge THANK YOU to the gentleman at the framing counter at Hobby Lobby and the reason why I am thankful for the kindness of strangers.

PS: And a huge thank you to my new friend Mel who has been my rock when I needed a shoulder to cry on. :)

Monday in the library

For those of you who were wondering how subbing in the library went well, here is the update. Everything went ok. I had to restart the computer 3 times. When the 1st graders (3 classes one right after the other) came in, the computer froze so I couldn't check any books in or check them out. I had to get the kids to stack their books and then I wrote down every book they were checking out. It was only three pages worth (thank goodness it is a small school district) but it took me 45 minutes to get everything checked in and then checked out after I got the computer up and running again after school. I had a good day although I was by myself most of the time. Next time I am taking a radio or something. It was way too quiet!

Hope you are having a good week.

Smiles to you all :)

Thanksgiving Poem

At Grandma's House

I like the taste of turkey

Any time throughout the year

But it never seems to taste as good

As when Thanksgiving's here.

Could be it's all the trimmings

That are cooked with it to eat-

But I think it's eating at Grandma's house

That makes it such a treat!

~Author Unknown

Even though we have lived in the same town or very near to our grandparents houses, I was always so excited to get to go to see my aunts, uncles and cousins. Now with my honey and his family added into the mix, we don't get to go every year but we still have a great time and awesome food when we do!

It's a new week!!

Weekly Menu -

Monday: taco salad (my honey's favorite)
Tuesday: quesadilla (my honey will have taco salad again)
Wednesday: left overs?
Thursday: fend for yourself
Friday: out to eat with my parents
Saturday: who knows

You may look at my menu and think, she doesn't take very good care of her husband when it comes to eating. Well, this would be because my husband is watching his weight and so what he eats is limited. Therefore, I don't cook much. I try to cook one meal a week but he eats a lot of salad, taco salad, wheat thins with dip and fluff (I can't explain this but sometime I will share his recipe).

Tomorrow I get to sub in the library. I love books and my husband thinks that I would make a great librarian. At this point I am not really interested in going back to school since I just graduated in December. I think that one day I may get a masters degree for reading specialist or something but right now I don't even want to think about it.

The weather yesterday and today has been wonderful! It has been very cool which is great. But as I sit here shivering, I wonder what this winter has in store for us. For those of you who know me know how drafty our house is and it seems to get worse every year.
Well, I hope everyone has a great week.

What school did you say?

Another day, another school, another classroom, another bunch of kids. . . . .

This morning the phone rang and woke me from a very deep sleep. Half way into the conversation this voice asks me if I can sub today for 5th grade. I am silent for what seems a very long time and then say yes. My next question is what school will I be at? What grade? Sure, I say and jump out of bed. Now, you may wonder why I was asking what school, well, I am signed up to teach at three different districts. That is why I was confused, well that and the fact that I was dead asleep when the phone rang. I am supposed to be at the school at 7:30 am, the current time is 6:45, I live 20 minutes from the school (when there isn't any traffic) and I have to take a shower before I can even think about leaving the house. Well, I got there a little before 8:00 and made it through the day. I had subbed this particular group of kids before so they wanted to know what I had been doing and why I hadn't ever subbed for them again. It was fun to see them again but I was really tired when I got home from the rush of the morning and the long day of video watching! And so goes the adventures of the substitute teacher. . . . . . . .and tomorrow begins another day, in another school and so on and so forth!!

Veterans Day

Thank a Veteran

It is the soldier, not the reporter,

Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the soldier, not the poet,

Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,

Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the soldier, who salutes the flag,

Who serves beneath the flag,And whose coffin is draped by the flag,

Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

-- Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, USMC

Remember to thank our veterans and to continue to pray for those who are in harms way.

photo from google.com/images

Thursday

Well, I subbed again today. This time for 5th graders. Not too bad. No work for me tomorrow though. The hubby and I are spending the day together. We are going to eat dinner with his sister and bro-in-law. We also hope to get some Christmas shopping done at our favorite store Big Lots. That is all for tonight.

Have a happy! :)

Wacky Wednesday

Today I subbed in a first grade Bi-lingual class. You may be saying to yourself, I didn't know that she speaks spanish. Well, guess what. . . .I don't! I decided that since it was only a half day sub job, I would try it out. First thing off the bat was their journal assignment. . . . . .it was written in spanish. I had to have the students tell me what it was. Anyway, long story short - the kids were great, we made it through the morning and I won't do it again!!!

I am always looking for ideas for my bible classes to make them interesting and memorable for the kids. As you know, I am working on the 10 Plagues right now. So far we are through #4. While working on the diaromas Saturday night, I thought the smell from the cigar boxes was going to make me sick, with that said, they look AWESOME if I should say so myself! Anyway, I love Mrs. H and Kelli's ideas about what we are thankful for so, I am going to do something similiar in my 3 year old class from now until Thanksgiving. Not sure what it will be yet but I will let you know!

"So dull and dark are the November days.The lazy mist high up the evening curled,And now the morn quite hides in smoke and haze;The place we occupy seems all the world."- John Clare, November

What will tomorrow bring?

Tomorrow is a very important day and I hope that each of you take the time to go cast your vote. Remind those you see to vote.



16 Random Things

Directions:Once you’ve been tagged, you have to write a note with 16 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end choose 16 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you.



1. I would like to visit Ireland and go to the International Horse Show.

2. I was named after my mom's first baby doll.

3. I worked for a year and a half (or there abouts) in law enforcement as a dispatcher and jailer (when needed).

4. Hates games that require quick math skills or any math skills(cards, dominoes, etc)

5. Doesn't care much for ice cream

6. Loves going to Super Chevy car races and looking at old Chevys with my dad

7. My name means "perfection"

8. Hates losing touch with friends

9. I hate butterscotch and caramel

10. Wish I knew the Bible better

11. Hate being called Tammy Faye.

12. Was FFA president my senior year of high school.

13. Hopes that I am as good at doing things as my mom when I grow up

14. Wants a boy and girl

15. Loves living in the country

16. Loves horses and dogs



Well, I don't know 16 people in blog land so if you happen to come across my blog, consider yourself tagged!! If you decide to participate, leave me a comment so I can come check out your answers.

Can you believe. . . .

that it is already November 1st? Where has the year gone? What will 2009 bring to my honey and me?

Finally Friday!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
I love this time of year but this year is probably one of our more quiet Halloweens. We never have trick-or-treaters (which is fine with me) because we live in the country so they just don't come out. We had thought about having a Halloween party like we used to but decided against that since all of our friends have children and would be out with their trick-or-treaters. So, we are at home and both of us are on the computer with my honey doing work and me just wasting time!
Well, I just got home from spending time with my parents. We went to one of the biggest arts and crafts show in our state. It happens once a month all year long. I had never been before so I was excited about going. I am glad to be home, got some Christmas shopping done and am now ready to get some rest!! If you caught one of my earlier blogs about another show we had gone to where I ranted about the people who bring dogs and small babies to shows will want to know about this show. Well, there were tons of dogs, lots of babies (even an 11 day old baby girl) and lots of carts and scooters. I was prepared so they didn't bother me as much as before but they were still a little annoying! I only wanted to slap a couple of people and that was after being there two days!! There was a lot of cute things and as usual, my mom and I would look at things and say, "We could make that for a whole lot less.". Maybe this time we will! Anyway, it is late and I am pooped.
Happy Halloween Everyone!! I look forward to seeing your little ghosts and goblins pictures if you decide to post some. :)

Busy, busy, busy. . . . . . .

ok, so I wasn't that busy but I feel like I have been running around like a crazy woman. Today my grandmom came to town and took my mom and I to lunch. We had a good lunch and then went shopping. Although we only went to two different stores, I was so tired when we were done. During this shopping trip, I was able to accomplish a couple of things I had been looking for like 1) new pants, 2) a cream colored short sleeved shirt, 3) some plastic farm animals (thanks Mrs. H. for the other animals) and best of all. . . . . . . .I was able to get 10 free cigar boxes. 10 FREE CIGAR BOXES! I really lucked out on that one because the guy at the cigar store said that the other clerks charged $3.00 a box but he just gave them away. WOO WHOO!!! I was excited about everything I found. You are probably asking yourself, why is she looking for plastic farm animals and cigar boxes. Well, I mentioned in my weekend blog that I had worked on my dioramas for the 10 plagues, well, I have had some difficulties in finding the supplies I needed. I had snagged some plastic school boxes from my mom and was putting the plagues in those but I really hated keeping my moms boxes occupied for an indefinite amount of time. Now that I have the cigar boxes, the dioramas can be permanent! Yippee!!
Well, we voted tonight. I am glad to get that over with! Well, that is all I have time for today. I am subbing in a music class tomorrow so I need to get some sleep!

Monday Madness

Ok, so Monday hasn't been too bad. The weather is absolutely wonderful and I am getting ready to go for a quick walk!

I can not believe that it is now less than 2 months until Christmas. I am hoping that this Christmas is much better than last year.

Well, I didn't get my walk in today because, well, life just sometimes gets in the way. With that said, I want to ask those of you who pop over here from time to time to please put my Aunt K on your prayer list. She has bravely been fighting breast cancer and her tests results today show that she will have to keep fighting very hard against this cancer. The chemo that she has been taking has not been working. The tumors in her liver are still there and bigger and they think she has one in her lung now. Please pray for her and her family.

Weekend Update

Oh my, I am really behind on my blogging. Even though we didn't have much planned for the weekend, it was busy. Saturday I worked on the church bulletin and November calendar for church, cooked for the church luncheon, went to a "thank you for helping me move dinner" and then ended the day by finishing up my first 2 dioramas for the 10 plagues for bible class the next day. Sunday was church, luncheon, a little shopping (didn't find anything), church and then a visit with the in-laws. Now on to the new week!!

Thursday Update!

Since I haven't taken the time to learn how to download the pics from my camera, I decided to share a few of my halloween decorations by taking the pictures on my computer. They aren't very good but hopefully I can download my camera and you can see the good ones!

Well, today I subbed in a 5th grade classroom who since school began has had 5 different subs. The teacher has been out on maternity leave and her co-teacher (one teaches all things English/science & the other teaches math studies) has been out for the same reason. Oh, my stars, these students were so wild. The two groups I had were probably the worst I have ever had and to make matters worse, I had the worst lesson plans to "try" to work from. I was totally exhausted this afternoon by the time I got home. Tomorrow I get to go back and do it all again!

Today's high was 69 degrees. I am loving it! Unfortunately, we didn't get any rain when the cold front came in. I am so hoping for a COLD winter this year (of course, our house is so not weather proofed so I will probably complain about being cold when I am at home). I would really love some snow but ice would be nice too! Well, that is all I have time for tonight. I am going to one of my former student's baseball game.

Tuesday Thoughts or Something Like That

Today I wondered all day what I was going to make with the hamburger I was thawing out. My honey was being picky about what he wanted to eat so I was wracking my poor, tired brain for something spectacular. Well, the brain wasn't working so I went to the Internet (oh, it is important that you know that I need to go grocery shopping so there isn't much in the house!) and did a search. I found something that looked interesting. Let me tell you, it turned out wonderful so I decided to share the recipe with my blog friends!

Macaroni and Beef Casserole
1/2 # ground beef,brown off in pan,drain (I season my meat with garlic, black/red pepper mix & garlic powder)
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup (low-sodium is fine, but for best results don't use low-fat)
1/2 can milk (measure using empty soup can after you've added soup)
1 (8-oz) box elbow macaroni ( I used farfalli)
1 cup grated extra sharp Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup diced green peppers (optional) I omitted
1/4 cup mayonnaise (for best results don't use Miracle Whip or fat-free mayonnaise)
1 (4-oz can) sliced mushrooms (optional)
black pepper to taste

Cook macaroni in boiling water until slightly underdone and drain. Grate cheese and dice peppers if using.Mix all ingredients in oven-proof mixing bowl until evenly combined or mix in a regular mixing bowl and transfer to a glass Pyrex casserole dish. This will look pale and strange compared to other macaroni and cheese recipes, but it's as it should be.
Bake at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes or until top is lightly browned and bubbly but not scorched.Serves 4 generous portions and can be doubled or tripled easily. Add diced onions and/or leftover ham, turkey, or chicken as a variation if you please. This is a very forgiving recipe my mother found somewhere many years ago; it's also very good eaten cold from the refrigerator for a midnight snack.

This was really good. My honey enjoyed it and it is something he would like again!

I am going to go off on a little rant. . . . . .there is not much on tv so I flipped to Bravo to see what was on (not much as usual) but I am sitting here typing so I didn't ever go somewhere else. As I sit here I started listed to "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" and I began thinking, are these woman for real? They are so ridiculous, they think that the world revolves around them, that no one else measures up to them and do they really think that they are housewives? I am pretty sure that they wouldn't know how to do house or yardwork if it reached up and slapped them in their plastic surgeon created faces!! Anyway, no wonder so many people have problems in this country. Ok, I am done (oh, and I changed channels before I threw something at my tv).

This weekend we celebrated G-mom's 85th birthday. About 35 people came to the party. It was really good to see old friends and family that we had not seen in a while. G-mom enjoyed it also.

I am looking for something and I hope that maybe someone out there in blogger land can give me some recommendations. I am looking for some clips to attach to wood so I can clip paper to wood blocks. If anyone has any idea where to get some, please let me know!! :)

This afternoon I looked out of my living room window and hanging out near our propane tank were out two youngest calves. They looked so cute out there. I was only able to get a picture of one because the other was behind a tree and they were quickly getting away from me. When I learn how to download the pictures off of my camera, I will show you what they look like. They are so pretty and I love having them around the house. That is one thing I will really miss when my honey and I get a home of our own. Hopefully G-mom or mommy will let us buy one or two from them so we can watch them from our new place. I love our little cows. :)

Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to put some pics of my halloween decor on here.

Happy Fall Ya'll

What time does it start?

Today I subbed in the other school district where I live. It is the first time I have subbed there but I did do my student teaching there. Anyway, the times for this particular job on the internet said that it began at 7:45 am and ended at 2:45 pm. I walked in the door at 7:45 and the office ladies were writing passes for the students. The sub lady took me to my classroom where my students were lined up and waiting for me to get there. I looked at the plans (after I finally found them) and guess what, my plans started at 7:30 am. Well, long story short, teachers have to be there at 7:15 and pick up their kids at 7:30. They ask me to teach Friday and Monday for the same teacher so I guess it was ok.

The weather here is wonderful! Unfortunately it won't last long. We finally got rain yesterday and it is currently 70 degrees and very cloudy. Lovin it!

Don't you hate it when you lose something and you know it was there but now you can't find it anywhere? I hate that, it makes me so stinking mad. Anyway, that is all for today. It is almost the weekend.

Happy Fall ya'll!

I am pretty sure. . . .

that I was not meant to teach kindergarten. I subbed in a kindergarten class today and I am so tired I can hardly stand it! I don't think that 1st grade is where I want to be either. I am thinking 2nd, 3rd or 4th will be the best "fit" for me. Anyway, that is how I spent my day.

Tomorrow is my grandmother's 85th birthday so I am not working tomorrow so I can spend time with her and some of the family that is here from out of town. We are having a party for her this weekend so we will be pretty busy celebrating! I hope she enjoys her special days!

Thats all for now.
Happy Fall Ya'll!

A good, real, unrestrained, hearty laugh is a sort of glorified internal massage, performed rapidly and automatically. It manipulates and revitalizes corners and unexplored crannies of the system that are unresponsive to most other exercise methods. ~Author unknown, from an editorial in New York Tribune, quoted in Quotations for Special Occasions by Maud van Buren

Monday Madness

Happy Columbus Day!!

Supper Menu

Monday: 4 cheese lasagna & garlic bread

Tuesday: leftovers

Wednesday: leftovers or something after church

Thursday: fishsticks, mac & cheese

Friday: out with family

Halloween Poem

H - harvest time is getting near
A- apple pie and autumn leaves
L- lots of halloween candy
L- leaves all over the ground
O- orange and other harvest colors
W- winter is on it's way
E- early frost
E- enjoying a little bit cooler weather
N- November is almost here
by: Giggles

Have a great week.

Happy Fall Ya'll!

Weekend Wrap up!

Today my honey, my mommy and my little sis went to the Scarecrow Festival. There was so much cute stuff to look at but we were good and didn't buy much. I got a really cute pumpkin yard stake, my honey got some almond brittle and my sis did some Christmas shopping. Oh, mom bought a funnel cake. Yummo! Although we had a really good time, we had questions that just weren't and probably never will be answered. Here is a sampling of our questions. . .why do you bring babies and young children to an outside craft show? Your strollers are a pain in the other people around you, their feet, knees, shins, etc. Your huge wagons are a pain because they are always in the way. Please find a babysitter, you, your children and those around you will be happier. Please don't get me wrong, I love children but I do not enjoy being run over by strollers, wagons and having to listen to you and your child arguing about shopping or listen to your very hot, unhappy baby screaming at the top of its lungs because it is miserable. An outside craft show is definitely not the place for a weeks old baby. Next, dogs. . . .why do you take a dog to an outside craft show? They, like the children are miserable and get in the paying customers way while they are trying to shop. Lastly, your attire. . . .please take a look in the mirror before you leave your house. The general public would appreciate it. OK, enough of my rant. We did have a good time but it was hot, too many dogs, too many kids and not enough space!!

This evening me and my honey went to DQ and I finally got a pumpkin pie blizzard. They are so good! Then we went to the in-laws and picked up broken concrete chunks to fill in some of the holes in our driveway.

Last night we finally got to eat cake and open presents for my birthday. I got some really nice gifts. My honey got me some perfume and a shirt, parent unit got my diploma framed (it looks awesome), in laws got me earrings, G-mom 1 got me a Christmas craft idea book, G-mom 2 gave me $, little sis gave me hook board for my cute measuring spoons she gave me last year and a cute bookmark, and friend gave me a pretty shirt. Great gifts + good cake=good day!!

Well, I am wrapping this up for the evening. I hope everyone had a great week.

Happy fall ya'll!

Thoughtful Thursday

I heard this in a devotional at church a couple of weeks ago and then I got it in an e-mail today so I decided to share it.

Cell phone vs. Bible
Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several time a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to Kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go....hmm...where is my Bible?
Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.
Makes you stop and think 'where are my priorities? And no dropped calls!

It really makes you think doesn't it?

Well, this afternoon I went to the funeral of an old family friend. Well, he really wasn't that old, he was only 61. As I sat and listened to the service (and to my dad who lead singing; he did an awesome job!) I remember things about growing up with his family that I hadn't thought about in years. I remembered the very first cokefloat we ever had. He picked us all up from swimming lessons and took us to Dairy Queen for the yummy treat. I remember going to dinners at their house and playing for hours, borrowing movies from them because they had cable and we didn't, visiting his feed store. It had been so long since I thought of his family in that way. It is terrible how as we grow up we so often grow apart from the people who meant so much in our young lives.

Well, on to something more upbeat! I want to say "Thank you" to Jennifer at Trading Ashes for Beauty who honored my blog with the Smile Award. I was so shocked to get the award. I promise to share the award as soon as I get it all figured out! Thank you again Jennifer! I really needed it because this has been one of the most difficult years I have ever had. Here is something for you to think about. . . . Always remember to be happy because you never know who's falling in love with your smile. ~Author Unknown

Well, I am going to go for now. My honey has come home so we can go celebrate my birthday!

Interesting fact: Laughing lowers levels of stress hormones and strengthens the immune system. Six-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day. Adults only laugh 15 to 100 times a day. I think that we adults need to stop taking ourselves so seriously and spend more time laughing!!

Happy fall ya'll!! :)

Random Ramblings

Well, so far, nothing really exciting has happened this week. Yesterday my mom brought the rest of my stuff home that I had stored at her house during Hurricane Ike. I have gotten the pictures back on the wall but I haven't gotten all of them back in their spots around the house. I finally finished decorating for Halloween! I am excited about that. Oh, and today I subbed in Art. It was so much fun. The kids were great, the teachers around me talked to me and they want me to be their sub when they are out. It was a much better experience than all of the others!! I had K-4th and I think I have decided that I do not want to teach Kindergarten. They are tooooo needy!

My honey and I are watching the show Dirty Jobs and we were discussing how cranberries grow. Since neither one of us know a thing about cranberries, I used the world wide web to find out. The OceanSpray website popped up with the information we needed. It is interesting that they grow in a bog and it is really interesting to see them harvested. Something new to stick in the somewhat useless information file! Dirty Jobs is such an interesting show (well the ones that aren't truely revolting are interesting!) and Mike Rowe does such a good job and he is so funny. I would not watch it if he weren't on it. Here is something to ponder about the food we eat. . . . . .do you know where pineapples grow? In a tree? In the ground? On a vine? Stay tuned to find out.

Last night my honey wanted taco salad so that is what I made and he had some red jalapeno peppers and he ask me to cut them up and roast them in the oven. I did and I found that it takes several and I do mean several hand washings to get all of the hot juice off of your hands. I burned my lip and I got it in my eye. Just remember to wash, wash, wash or let your husband roast his own own jalapenos!.

Well, it has been a long day and I am ready to sleep. Thanks for stopping by and taking a peak. I had hoped to get a chance to visit some other blogs tonight but it is too late so I will do that tomorrow. Good night John Boy. . . . .oh, wait, he doesn't live here!

Happy Fall to you all!

I almost forgot to tell you about pineapples. . . .they grow in the ground! I thought they grew on trees!

Tantalizing Thursday

Well, we finally made it to October. Someones (mine) birthday (mine) is coming up (mine) but I won't mention (mine) any names (mine)! Oh, my g-mom (grandmother) and bro - in - law share their birth date which is this month. So they (and me) get to celebrate their b-days for the whole month!

Enough about birthdays. I guess I will talk about work. So far I have only subbed one day (this week) (today) at a school I hadn't been to before. Although I don't really liked subbing, I have learned some very useful information. I have found that most adults at the schools I sub at seem to look down their noses at the "subs". I went another day with only one or two adults talking to me. When I become "real" teacher, I will be friendly to all subs and help them as much as possible. I never did learn where the faculty bathroom was today. Enough whining about work. . . .I had a good time with my 3rd graders I taught today. I wouldn't mind working with this group again.

Since I haven't cooked lately or added any new recipes, I decided today was the day to add a yummy Rachael Ray recipe. If you make this, you have to let me know how it is. Well, I guess that is all for today. Hope everyone has a wonderful fall weekend.

Mean Green Tortilla Soup

Ingredients
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
3 ears of corn, kernels removed (reserve shaved corn cobs)
1 package corn tortillas, cut into strips
4 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
1 package (3 pieces) chicken thighs or breasts
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, grated
2 teaspoon cumin
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
10 to 12 tomatillos, husks removed - can substitute a jar of chunky salsa verde sauce
2 cups cilantro, chopped
Zest and juice of 2 limes
2 cups jack cheese, shredded
3 avocados, chopped (optional)

Preparation: Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large pot, bring the chicken stock and water to a bubble with the reserved corn cobs and let simmer for about 10 minutes.

Place the corn tortilla strips onto a baking sheet and spray them with some cooking spray. Transfer to the oven and bake until crispy, 10 minutes.

Preheat a skillet over medium-high heat with some EVOO about 2 turns around the pan. Add the chicken, browning on all sides, then place into the oven for about 7-8 minutes, until juices run clear and no pink remains in the center. Once the chicken is done cooking, remove from oven and let rest before cutting into strips.
Preheat a heavy-bottomed pot with remaining 2 tablespoons of EVOO. Add the onion, garlic and cumin, and cook till soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add the corn kernels along with the jalapeño.

While the veggies are cooking, puree the tomatillos in a food processor until somewhat smooth. Add the purée, stock and chicken to the pot along with the veggies.

Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat and add in the cilantro, lime zest and juice, and serve it up garnished with a big handful of jack cheese, tortilla and avocado.

It is almost October!!!

I can not believe that October is right around the corner! My three favorite holidays are coming up. . . .ok my four favorite holidays because I consider my birthday as a holiday and I stretch it out for the whole month! I am ready to decorate for Halloween but I am making myself wait until it is actually October (my neighbors down the road have been decorated since mid Sept). The one thing I am not looking forward to is the fact that during the last three months of the year time seems to speed up until we are running around at warp speed! I do have to say that I am glad that this fall I am not doing what I was having to do last year at this time. A quick overview of last year: student teaching, teacher work sample (three times to get it right), commuting to school for classes between student teaching placements, being terribly ill from being pregnant, terribly sleepy ALL the time, lesson plans, trying to come up with creative lessons and did I mention being terribly ill from being pregnant. I have to say I wouldn't have made it without my honey and my mommy!! I am taking a deep breath, pretending that I am terribly organized and rushing headlong into the end of the year!!!!

This past weekend was spent with my middle sis, her hubby, my tator tot and my madcow (otherwise known as my nephew and niece). We had a very nice visit. We got to watch madcow play softball and yesterday before we left the three of youngsters (ok I am not a youngster) played Monopoly on the computer. I thought it could be confusing on the game board, the computer had rules I have never heard of! Anyway, like I said, we had a good time but I wished they lived closer so we could get together more often.

Well, I have rambled enough for now. I may or may not come back and add more enlightening thoughts later.

I hope you have a great week!

Thoughts

I am not really sure how to start this blog so I guess I will just start like this. . . . . this week in our local paper I saw obituaries for two infants and it broke my heart. Today I stumbled across an article about a memorial that was held today to commemorate babies lost through miscarriage, stillborn or newborn death. All of the pain of losing our precious baby came rushing back to me as if it had just happened. The last nine months have been very difficult. Just when you think you are ok, you see something that reminds you of your loss or a friend tells you they are pregnant and you think of the things that you have missed and the list goes on. One positive thing that has come from our loss if the "e-mail" friendship I now have with someone who lost her baby several months after we did. We have helped each other through the tough milestones, disappointment of not having an easy time getting pregnant, of just the sense of loss and the questions you constently ask yourself such as why, was it something I did and the lists go on and on. If you know someone who has lost a baby, give them a hug because I am sure they can use it. I also found a website that may help someone who is struggling with a loss. It is called MEND: Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death and their website is http://home.mend.org/. I don't know much about it because I haven't had time to explore the entire website.

I thought about apologizing for this post being such a downer but I am not going to. Hopefully it will help someone find the comfort they need knowing that others are going through the same things they are. Maybe it will help me also.