Mustard Seeds

Eat Clean

2012-01-23T07:53:00.011-06:00

There seems to be a lot of confusion on the concept of "eating clean". What can you eat? Is this allowed? How do you count calories? Do you write everything you eat down? And so on. I will try my best to clear it up for you. I do not write anything down. I do not count points. I don't count calories. I am a huge fan of The Eat Clean books by Tosca Reno, and Oxygen Magazine. Here is a link to her website. You will find tons of helpful information and videos.

http://www.eatcleandiet.com/tosca_reno.aspx
I highly recommend her latest book, Just The Rules

Another source of inspiration is a book by Dr. Oz...You On a Diet.

I have been reading and researching these books for the past year, and I have learned a lot about nutrition. (I wish I could go back to college to become a registered dietician, but I digress. )Here's the gist of the diet.

You try to eat food as close to the way it is provided for us in nature. Eat an apple or an orange instead of drinking the juice. Fruits and veggies are the healthy carbs our diets should include so we can get our full range of vitamins and minerals. I try to limit breads, but when I have a sandwich, it is on whole grain bread. I use whole grain pasta and brown or wild rice instead of white pasta and rice. Oatmeal, as I have mentioned in my post on breakfast foods, gives energy and protein and warms your tummy(sprinkle cinnamon on top, its delicious). No sugar...it really is poison to your body. Sugar causes insulin surges making it more difficult to lose fat. In fact, belly fat is directly related to sugar intake. I will post soon about sugar. I eat lots of salads, beans, chicken, salmon (I really like those little foil pouches of pink salmon by Chicken of the Sea). I have a steak once a week ,but I no longer put butter and sour cream on baked or sweet potatoes. Instead of craving sugar, I now crave sauteed spinach...must be just what my body is needing. I love Chobani Greek yogurt (one serving has 14 grams of protein). I use olive oil for sauteeing spinach, chicken, and dipping bread occasionally. Avocadoes are a good, healthy fat. Healthy fats are good for your heart and skin, and actually don't make you fat if eaten in moderation...just a drizzle, not a cup full. Almonds and walnuts are a great snack containing healthy fat and protein.
I have learned to read labels. Make sure food is real food. If you can't pronounce the ingredients, don't eat it. Try to choose foods with lower sugars and higher protein, and make sure to eat plenty of fiber rich foods...they keep you feeling full longer. In fact your body needs to be refueled about every 4 hours to function at it's best, so be prepared with healthy snacks when you leave the house, so you won't be tempted to run through fast food or buy a candy bar. The energy you get from the candy bar will fizzle out quickly, leaving you hungrier than ever.

Just remember, God designed our bodies to eat for our fuel. He created all the right foods necessary to our bodies. When men and women of the Bible ate, their foods were natural, whole foods, like nuts, grains, seeds, fish, fruit, vegetables, with an occasional find of some sweet honey from a honeycomb. They did not go through the fast food lane or into a convenience store. I believe our bodies are still meant to eat this way, and will funtion best when we are given the right foods in proper amounts.

All this said, I do have a treat every now and then, but it is more an exception than the rule. This keeps me sane, and I find that I really enjoy that treat more that I don't eat them everyday.

Think about these concepts, and keep it as clean as you can .

You've Got to Move It...Move It

2012-01-20T14:36:00.005-06:00

Last Christmas, my parents gave us an elliptical machine for Christmas. We found one we really like at Costco. I try to use it at least 3 times weekly. I promise myself I only have to do it for 15 minutes, but I usually get going and go longer than that. Sometimes I just go outside and walk for 30 minutes. Did you know that for every mile you log in, you burn about 100 calories. You will also boost your resting metabolism, burning more calories even when you are asleep at night. Any type of cardio exercise will also help keep your heart strong, aid circulation, and help with high blood pressure. So just do it, as the Nike ad says, and GET MOVING. Just start slowly or you will be sore.

I downloaded a neat app on my iphone called SportsTracker. It was free, and when you go for an outdoors walk, it will tell you how far you went, and how many calories you have burned. Along the way, it updates your speed, and your distance. Check it out. I just love it. It also allows you to play music on your phone's Ipod at the same time.

Just this week, I joined a local gym. I had a session with a personal trainer yesterday, and he taught me some new exercises, mostly to strengthen my core. I am not really trying to lose pounds now, but I do want to add muscle and strengthen. Weight lifting exercises are important for increasing strength, muscle tone, and improving bone density. Building muscle increases your metabolism dramatically. For each pound of muscle you add, you can burn up to 50 calories more per day . If you add 10 pounds of muscle that adds up to 500 calories daily which means a 1 pound loss of weight per week. So, you can see, that by getting rid of fat and increasing your muscle mass, you could really see a difference in the course of a year.

Once again, I have nothing magical, but if you drink lots of water, eat a good breakfast, and exercise, you will start to see results.

Breakfast of Champions...Stoke Your Fire

2012-01-15T14:03:00.007-06:00

Tip #2: Eat a good breakfast

Your Mother probably told you breakfast is the most important meal of the day. She was right. After fasting for about 12 hours your body needs fuel. You need something with protein to sustain your hunger, and some carbs to start the burning process. I like to think of the carbs as small twigs and kindling, and protein as the big logs in a campfire. It takes both to get a roaring fire going, and that's just what I want for my metabolism. I want to become a burning machine. If you limit your calories too low, the "flame" goes out , and your metabolism slows.

I alternate between 4 breakfast meals so I don't get bored. Here are my favorite breakfasts:

#1:Protein Shake. Everyone asks me how I make my shakes, so here are my directions. I know there are more expensive protein powders on the market, and they might be worth their higher price, but I have found the protein powder off the shelf at my local Wal-Mart has worked just fine for me. I like the taste of the Pure Protein whey powder...this one is vanilla cream, and the frosty chocolate flavor is good, too.I use 8 ounces of skim milk, one scoop of protein powder, and frozen fruit. ( I put a banana in a zip bag when they start to get too ripe to eat, and break it up a bit and store in the freezer.) Sometimes I add a handful of frozen strawberries, blueberries, or mixed fruit I get in the freezer case at the grocery store. There is not really a specific recipe...just experiment and make it to your taste. Throw all in the blender and voila...breakfast. I often add a few drops of almond or vanilla extract...you know for variety.

While I am on the subject of blenders, let me plug my Ninja blender. This thing has some power! It has 3 sets of blades, and it gets the job done. It has been used and abused this past year, and it still works great. Bed, Bath, and Beyond has them for about $100.00, but they always accept expired coupons, so you can usually get additional $20.00 off. Not cheap...but so worth it if you need a good blender. Also note the neat milkshake straws I found there. They have a larger diameter , and make it much easier to drink a shake from.

Breakfast #2: Oatmeal is so good for you...Dr. Oz says so...It will also keep you from getting hungry later in the morning. I like the steel cut oats because they are less processed than the kind that is steamed , rolled, and then cut. No time you say? It only take about 5 minutes to cook on the stove top. I add 1/2 cup of blueberries (frozen berries are fine...they will thaw right away when they get stirred into the oatmeal),some cinnamon, a splash of skim milk, and sometimes I add a teaspoon of maple syrup or honey. Slivered almonds on top are good, too.

#3: This quick...go to breakfast is a bowl of cereal in skim milk. I have a large Rubbermaid cereal dispenser, also from Wal-Mart, that I keep a mixture of cereals in. These are the 2 most recent cereals I have purchased. Kashi cereals are delicious, and the Fiber One cereals have tons of fiber in them. I like the Kashi Island Vanilla wheat squares, and Go Lean Crunch or Go Lean Crisp. Just try to pick cereals with lower sugar and higher on the fiber and protein. I always cut up 1/2 banana and throw in a handful of frozen blueberries to my cereal.

#4: If we have a leisurely morning, we will whip up a veggie omelet. We mix up three egg whites and a couple whole eggs (this is for 2 people) and some fresh spinach leaves, chopped onion, bell pepper, and diced tomatoes. I cook in a nonstick skillet sprayed with Pam cooking spray. You could add whatever veggies or lean meat like chicken or turkey that you have on hand . This is good with a little salsa spooned on top. Sometimes I add just a touch of shredded cheese, too.

I have found that eating every 3-4 hours keeps my hunger cravings at bay, and gives me the energy I need to get through the day.

I eat 5-6 times a day, and I try to eat as clean and unprocessed as possible. I try to incorporate protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats into each meal. Think of food as fuel for your body. You wouldn't put Kool-Aid in the gas tank of an expensive sports car, so you can't expect to put junk in your body's fuel tank and expect to "run on all cylinders".

I try to think of eating the way God intended for us to eat. He gave us fruits, nuts, seeds, fish, grains, lean and healthy meats, and veggies. Staying with His plan works so much better for me...funny it works that way, huh? After all , our body is His temple. Confession time...every now and then I have something that's not really on my food list, but I savor it fully, and get right back on track at the next meal.

Sorry this is such a long post, and that there is nothing magical about my plan, but it does work, and even after a year of eating this way, I am not bored.

Healthy eating this week...and eat your breakfast!

My Weight Loss Journey...some tips

2012-01-10T17:55:00.011-06:00

You all know that I started my weight loss journey last January. It wasn't really a New Year's resolution, but a decision that it was time to get healthy. Over the past year, I have lost 67 pounds,lost 5 dress sizes, have come off blood pressure and cholesterol meds, and cut my bad cholesterol from 134 to 60. Now that some have been asking for my tips and diet info, I will try to make regular blog posts on habits that have helped me along the way. I am no professional nutritionist or physical fitness trainer, but I can share what has worked for me. I have been there , and I know how it can be so hard and frustrating to get the weight off.

As I have mentioned before, I come from a gene pool with high rates of heart attacks, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, stroke, and cancer. I was so tired of feeling tired and sluggish...not to mention that I hated looking at pictures of myself. It was definitely time to do something about it.So.....

I did. In fact, I was featured in a local health and fitness magazine. Here is the link with a before and after photo. This link takes you to the magazine, and then look at page 16. Much improved, don't you think?

http://issuu.com/pickleit/docs/hf_jan_2012?mode=window&viewMode=doublePage

If you can't link to the magazine photo, here is my version of before and after pics.

Tip #1: Drink Your Water

Drinking water is so important to our bodies. In fact our bodies are made up mostly of water. Water is calorie free, it promotes weight loss, helps flush toxins from the body, aids digestion and elimination, helps to increase energy, prevents dehydration,boosts metabolism, and aids in clearer skin. Carry a water bottle with you at all times, and drink a glass as soon as you wake up, with your meals, and in between meals. My Tervis Tumbler glass pictured above goes everywhere with me, and I mean everywhere.

In the upcoming weeks, I will try to post a few more of those helpful tricks I have found along my journey. In the meantime, get moving a little more, and start drinking more water.

Our Best 30 Years

2011-09-11T17:44:00.010-05:00

This August, Joey and I celebrated our 30th anniversary and went to our favorite place in this world...Panama City, Florida. We honeymooned there, and took many vacations there throughout the years. A special perk of going at the end of August is you get the beach to yourself. School is back in session, and the "snowbirds" have not arrived. Rates are discounted and the weather is usually great...even though it is hurricane season. I shouldn't be telling anyone this best kept secret. Look how clear the Gulf was.

see...the beach was deserted

beautiful sugar sand beaches

The view from the balcony is breathtaking.

the view at the pool is nice too
I could easily move here and be a beach bum.

This was as dressed up as we got for dinner each evening.

We found a nice city park that had some nice paved walking trails...

We walked 4 miles there.

We explored a state park with a 1 1/2 mile hike to the beach. Walking in sand will give you a workout, I'm here to tell you.

A nice bridge going to the beaches

We rested in a pavilion overlooking the bay

The property was built as a couple's home, and he died during the building process. The wife built some cabins on the property and rented them to vacationers in the late 50's.

It was a lovely place.

It's a good thing we did all that walking, so we could work off the calories in our meals.

We enjoyed The Captain's Table, which was new to us this year. My meal was scamp imperial, cheese grits, and Greek salad. Can you say "delicious"?

We went to our all time favorite place to eat...Captain Anderson's on the night of our anniversary. I had delicious grilled red snapper.

We strolled along the harbor and looked at the boats.

Toward the end of the week the current and waves were so strong that the flags were double red...meaning all waters closed to the public. It was still beautiful, and we enjoyed the pool.

You notice there is still no one in the backgrounds.

We are kind of selfish that way hogging the pool and beach to ourselves.

The best feeling in the world...toes in the sand. AAAAAHHHHH!!!

By the end of the week, we were a little tanner and much more relaxed.

Sheila + Joey =30 great years.

Wish you were here...wish I was!

It is so hot, you could fry an egg on the sidewalk...really!

2011-08-04T14:37:00.007-05:00

We are having quite a heatwave here in the South. Temps over 100 degrees. I have heard the saying all my life that it is so hot you could fry an egg on the sidewalk. Before the boys went down for their nap we decided to put this to a test.

We sat out a skillet with an egg on the driveway.

When they woke up, we went out to check it. Sure enough...

It cooked...hard cooked, that is.

I've Lost It ...at 50...

2011-06-30T17:32:00.003-05:00

I am so excited. I have oficially lost 50 pounds today (yes, I weigh every day). It is amazing how much your weight can fluctuate in a few days, or at different times of the day, for that matter. But as of this morning I reached 50 pounds.

This is the most recent picture taken last week before our Friday night date . I have continued my exercise regime, and healthy eating. I do feel so much better. I was able to cut my lousy cholesterol from 134 to 60. I was a heart attack or stroke waiting to happen. I have more energy, and respond to stress a little better. The very besty part is that I can go into any store and buy "regular" sized clothes.

Now I just have to continue the exercise and tighten up and add muscle tone. ..easier said than done when you are 50.

But I will press on.

Easter Family Fun

2011-04-26T12:07:00.005-05:00

We had such an enjoyable Easter Day!

We started the morning sitting out on the screened porch to have our protein shakes. Then we got ready for church service.Mother took our picture as we were out the door.

Then we came home and threw on some tennis shoes and hid about 200 or so eggs in the back yard. We wanted to stay dressed for photos, and the kids were on their way. The kids all arrived...I gave them a bucket of goodies...

We took the obligatory photos. Here are Shannon and Jason with their boys...

don't they look nice all spiffed up? Shawn and Darris looked nice, too. Easter sunday was their one year anniversary. Where has the year gone?

These two were so cute in their new duds. Hudson doesn't usually wear smocked outfits, but if it has tractors on it, then it's OK. I think Hudson fell into the dirt right after I snapped this picture.
We came inside, and tried to take some pictures with Mother and Daddy, but Hudson was not too cooperative by that time.

We were ready to eat. Jackson helped me make our placemats. I forgot to take pictures of the food until it was half eaten, but we had ham, maccaroni and cheese, fruit salad, deviled eggs, roasted asparagus, lima beans, rolls, and strawberry shortcake.

Then everyone was ready to hunt for eggs. It is amazing what you can get them to do when you put some money in a bunch of eggs.

You can see the action here. Joey had pulled the tractor out into the yard for hiding eggs.
They take their egg hunting very seriously.

In fact, Joey had to help Hudson find some eggs,

because the adults were all out for themselves.

Jackson held his own this year.

The boys decided to take a little ride around the yard to hunt for remaining eggs. Once again, I think Hudson fell out right after I snapped this picture. He is a bit clumsy, but he is only 17 months old.

Although he thinks he is big enough to drive by himself...not yet.

They all came into the porch to check out their "loot".

The boys played in the water in Hudson's pool Nanny and Gaga gave him.

The rest of the day was spent visiting and relaxing with the family. I am tired, but so blessed to have all my family so close.
Shawn and Darris took a little nap in the hammock.
Joey was kicked back on the chaise lounge.

I thought Jason was sleeping when I took this one...almost.

Pop, (Joey's Dad ), and Miss Anne came to eat and spend the day with us, too.

The weather was beautiful, the food good, and the company enjoyable.

Thank you God for so many blessings!

My Easter Home

2011-04-17T17:04:00.005-05:00

Still during...down 37 pounds...

Welcome to my Easter home.

a little mini typewriter with a favorite Scripture verse...

carrots and bunnies...

.

and an antique typewriter with a typed welcome message ...

my Easter tree...

entry display...

dining room buffet...

a little thrift store lamb...

my rooster egg dish...another thrift store find...

Easter chalkboard...

We are having our Easter lunch and egg hunt tomorrow with our parents and kids and grandkids. We are enjoying visiting a church that we have found just a few miles down the road. Our lunch will be ham, mac and cheese, roasted asparagus, deviled aggs, fruit salad, rolls, and angel food cake with strawberries.
I pray that you will get to celebrate our Savior's ressurrection tomorrow with your family.
I better get to cleaning, cooking, and setting my table.

In Him,

My Journey and Resolutions

2011-04-17T16:27:00.003-05:00

I promised you I would share something in my next post. Well, here goes. I have decided to lose weight and get healthier. This is definitely easier said than done. I weighed more than I ever have, and found out my cholesterol was too high, as is my blood pressure. With a high family history of heart disease, I decided it was time to make the change. Mother and Daddy got us an elliptical machine for our Christmas present, and I have been faithful to use it at least 4-5 times weekly. We have been trying to walk outdoors when the weather is nice. We have protein shakes or high fiber cereal for breakfast, eat a lot of turkey, salads and chicken. We limit our red meat consumption, and eat tons of vegetables and beans.

Here are a few "before" pictures. double chins and belly fat

I am a nurse, and I know better. Weight is something I have battled all my adult life. In fact before I had children, I remember saying I would not end up like this. NEVER say "never".

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, and I don't usually announce them so no one will know if I fail. I like to stay in my comfort zone, you know. I have lost 33.6 pounds, and I am continuing this way of eating and exercising, hopefully, for the rest of my life. I am not calling it a "diet", but just a healthy lifestyle. I go back to have my cholesterol checked in a couple weeks. It better be lower!!! I do feel much better, and I have more energy. There is just one BAD thing about it...all my clothes are too big. This can get expensive. I will continue sharing about this journey I am on. Here is my "during" photo. Much better, I think.

Everything John Deere

2011-03-29T17:31:00.004-05:00

What a fun day we had Saturday! Our local John Deere dealership invited us to John Deere Day. Well, my hubby and the grandsons are all about anything John Deere. They had a balloon man, and Jackson was proud of his sword.

Hudson sure loved "riding" that lawnmower. One day when he is a teenager, I hope he likes riding lawnmowers as much. Me and my boy...notice we were wearing the green...

Love Jackson's hat that the dealership gave him when he and Buddy went down to "just look" at lawnmowers about a year ago. They came home with a riding lawnmower for Joey and a Gator ride on for Jackson that day. Notice those ears folded down. Yes, he wore it like that all day.

I loved that they iced down the drinks in the trailer.

Here is Buddy with Hudson.

( Jackson wouldn't sit still long enough for a photo other than action shots.)

Speaking of action...

A favorite was a trough filled with feed corn. Hudson did taste a few bites, but he loved it.

It rained all day, so the dealership cleaned out their garage, and it was a perfect place for a party! They had a band, hot dogs, hamburgers, and BBQ, giant slides, bouncey house, a balloon man, a ride on train, and all the lawnmowers and tractors on display.

It was a wonderland for those two little boys

and 2 big boys, too (husband and son in law).

I haven't posted in a while, and I have something exciting (for me) I will share with my next post. "Til then,

Superbowl Party

2011-02-07T16:01:00.002-06:00

Of course Superbowl is just an excuse to get together for our family. We do like watching the commercials, but I was disappointed in them last night. I really didn't have a favorite team, but everyone else was cheering for the Packers, so I did too. We are trying to eat healthier, but game day foods just aren't too healthy. We love hot wings, and I decided we would make our own. I placed them on a nonstick sprayed cookie sheet and baked them for 30 minutes on each side at 375 degrees, and then we crisped them up for just a minute under the broiler. Then we tossed them in a honey BBQ
sauce and a traditional hot wing sauce made with Franks hot sause. The were really good...and a little healthier than those fried ones.

I made a pot of chili, too...
The boys got to drink from special football cups. I had them from Christmas (from Dollar Tree). They had a Santa design inside, so I put our football napkins in the copier, and cut a template to cover up the Santa design.

Some football decorations...

Shawn brought chips and dip, which we scarfed down before dinner
was ready.

I think Jackson was licking the bowl clean ,here.
Hot wings ready...and somebody's plate...

Shannon made some delicious chocolate peanut butter cupcakes.

Hudson will attest to the deliciousness...

Score!

Fun times.

Very Vintage Valentine Vignette

2011-02-04T10:52:00.005-06:00

I did a little Valentine's decorating this morning. First I'll share my mantel. I placed the deer and pinecones there a couple weeks ago when we had snow. I had a had a hard time deciding what to do after Christmas decorations were taken down. I hung my Valentine's garland below the mantel. I guess this is as good as it gets until Easter/Spring. Speaking of Spring...I can't wait.

You have seen my entryway table decorated for every season, and now it is "gussied" up for Valentine's.
I will share the items I chose to display, and a little story about some of them. This little vintage pink beaded purse is so sweet. It has a little lace hanky in it. On the plate are an antique perfume bottle, a little eye wash bottle, a dried rose from a wedding boquet, and a silver powder compact. A strand of pearls dresses them up a bit. You will notice the enlongated bottle on the back of the plate...it is an antique bottle my Mother shared with me. Story goes, when one was in mourning for their loved one, they would catch their tears in this little bottle. Wonder how many tears it took to fill it up?

a few vintage inspired Valentines...

clipped to a tree branch...

with vintage type clothespins.

The blocks have an old timey feel. I placed a heart paperweight on an old red and white handkerchief. Some rose petals are scattered around.

Here you can see the entire tabletop at once.

Don't forget to look underneath at a cute little cherub sitting on my stack of old Bibles.

a vintage Valentiney fan...

The quilted heart pillows were made by Mother from heirloom family quilts.

My late grandmother, better known as Bam, wore a favorite red corduroy jacket. After she passed away, my late mother in law took that jacket apart and made this adorable bear for me. It is a very special bear I have cherished for over 24 years now.

I added some candles and a little overstuffed miniature chair and a bowl of cherries. Reminds me of that mary Engelbright saying..."Life is just a chair of bowlies".

Thank you for sharing my Valentine vignette with me.

Have a nice Valentine's Day, and spend it with someone you love.

love is all you need,

Sheila

2011-01-19T10:46:00.002-06:00

I feel like I have fallen into the blogging black hole. I have been keeping up with blog reading, but posting has fallen by the wayside.

I have had a cold/cough for the past month, and just went to the doctor yesterday. She did a chest x-ray, and I have bronchitis. I got a sinus shot in the hip, blood drawn, and prescriptions for antibiotics, and codeine cough syrup. I am not coughing like I was, so I do feel much better.

You can see a little of what I have been doing lately. Last week when I babysat the grandsons, we made a tent under the dining room table. I couldn't get both boys picture in it at one time, but they loved it. Jackson had his toolbox and several cars under there. I had to get in, too-which didn't leave much room for playing.

We had snow here in the Memphis area...my sweet little tigers in the snow. They liked playing in it.

Their daycare had a winter gala program. This cute backdrop was made for photos. Jackson was a snowman. They made their shirts.
He loves his friends there, especially that cute little blonde girl next to him.
They were so cute lined up singing a snowman song.

Here I am with my favorite little fellows.

I went with my daughters, and Shawn's sister in law with the kids to Pump it Up...a blow up slide and bouncy place.
Hudson is sporting a new cute haircut.

Jackson loved going down the giant slide.
They all enjoyed the bouncy house.

Getting three kids to look at the camera is impossible.

But, you get the idea. We had a blast.

So, I finally got the Christmas decorations put away, and the house looks kind of sad. We have been going through old Christmas decorations in the attic, and trying to purge and consolidate storage. I do have about 8 boxes of items to take to the Goodwill. Not to mention the MANY boxes that were taken to the dumpster. It is nice to get rid of clutter in our lives.

We are trying to make room in the upstairs bonus room for either an exercise bike or elliptical machine. We have a Bow-Flex up there, and I decided it is time to use it. I need to get rid of a bit of weight that is cluttering my body.

I have vegetable soup cooking away in the Crock-Pot as I type. It smells so good .

That's all for my ramblings today. Stay warm and cozy.

I'm a Winner!

2011-01-11T11:28:00.003-06:00

No, I'm not tooting my own horn here , but I won somethin!! . I won this sweet LOVE necklace from Sommer at Designer Garden . I like to enter giveaways, but haven't won too many things. I get so excited to get packages in the mail.

The necklace was made by her friend, Tammy, at Type A.

She makes them from silver and fires them in a kiln. She stamps them with wax seal designs.

I think it is fabulous. She sent me a little enclosure card thanking me for "stalking" her blog.
Don't you love to "stalk" other people's homes via their blogs?

I know I will enjoy wearing it for Valentine's especially.

I hope the new year finds you well. We have snow here, and it is cold. I haven't really had much blogworthy going on.
Hopefully, I will get back in the swing soon. In the meantime, I will just enjoy stalking all my favorite blogs. Hee. Hee.

A Little More Christmas

2010-12-22T15:28:00.003-06:00

It is starting to feel a little more like Christmas to me. I got a call today from my boss, and I have tomorrow off. Yea! I don't go back to work until Monday...I needed a little break. I am enjoying catching up on some blog reading and relaxing this afternoon. This is my little computer nook.

and a few other little Christmasfied areas in the house.

a hot cocoa and spiced tea station...

And today, our dear friend, Betsy and her husband Jimmy, came for lunch.
I used small stockings to hold flatwear and napkins.
Betsy brought a delicious Butterfinger cake and a plateful of cookies.

I made a chicken and rice stew

and a chili dip.
The dip was a recipe from my boss who brought it to work last week. You spread a brick of cream cheese in a baking dish. Pour a can of Chili Magic over that, and top with 1 cup of grated cheese. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly, and serve with Fritos. It was really good.

The best part was the company, but we did not take a single picture. I am so disappointed, but I think we were too busy chatting to think about it.

It was good to catch up and share with friends...it did me good.

Rudolph Cake Balls

2010-12-18T18:39:00.002-06:00

I made cake balls today. Rudolph cake balls, in fact.

You bake a chocolate cake and break it up and mix in a container of chocolate (or any flavor you desire)icing into it. Dip out spoonfuls and with damp hands, roll them into balls. Refrigerate for about an hour.
Then dip them in melted chocolate wafers and place a red M&M for the nose.

Some white icing and a black dot of gel icing for eyes.

Break up some pretzels for the antlers. They do take on their own personalities. One looked like a bunny rabbit, and one reminds me of Mrs. Potatohead with her "angry eyes" on. But, in all, I think they turned out kinda cute.

My Christmas Table

2010-12-15T07:34:00.008-06:00

I am sharing my Christmas tablescape today. This was the table set last week for my extended family dinner. Sadly due to our wreck, we did not get together that day. We will try again after Christmas. Anyway, I really liked the way the table turned out, so I will use if for our Christmas Eve dinner.

My idea was to use what I already had this year, so I scavenged the attic, the buffet, the pantry, and, yes, the backyard.

I used a basic green tablecloth as the base.

I made the centepiece from those branches you have seen many times. These are like the ones we used at Shawn's wedding. I hung some old chandelier crystals with some vintage gold ornaments that I had purchased from an estate sale.
I retrieved the silver vase from my attic.

I nestled a pine cone, some greenery, a little white ceramic bird, and some more crystals atop some moss in the vase.The soup tureen is from the Goodwill. The hurricanes were also used at the wedding. I filled them with rock salt and placed a candle inside. I snipped some greens from the yard to tuck into the "snow", er I mean salt. The white plates are just plain buffet plates dressed up with pretty soup bowls from Goodwill.

The wicker chargers came from Wal Mart a few years ago.

Doesn't the caramel cake look good on the milkglass cake stand?

The little ceramic birds clipped to each charger were also a Goodwill find...I was lucky to find a whole box full of them.

I had to take some pictures, so I can recreate this for Christmas Eve.

I don't follow the "rules" when it comes to table setting. Who makes those rules anyway? I just use what I have, and what I like.
I am joining in this week's Tablescape Thursday. Hop on over there and feast your eyes on some beautiful tables.

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-tablescape-twelve-days-of.html

Thanks for looking at mine.

Gloom, Despair, and Agony on Me

2010-12-12T18:24:00.002-06:00

You may remember the song from Hee Haw that says , "If I had no bad luck, I'd have no luck at all...". I believe that must apply to me. We were supposed to host my family get together today, but plans can change very quickly. We had rain here in Memphis yesterday, and we had just left the Honeybaked Ham store with a 10 pound ham to come home and prepare for our company, when this happened. A young lady hydroplaned on the wet street, unable to make the curve, and she was heading straight for us in our lane. Thank goodness Joey was driving, and he tried to veer right to avoid hitting her head on, but we were on a 2 lane street with no shoulder. We ended up being hit down his side of the car and landing down a little embankment. Thankfully no one was seriously injured, but we were very shook up. Our air bags deployed, so we were not allowed to drive the car the 1/2 mile to our automotive shop. We had to pay $125 for that wrecker call. My brother in law came to rescue us and deliver us home. (Word to the wise...always go to the bathroom before you get in the car for a long drive, because the wait for a wrecker might be over 1 hour. I'm just saying. Rick drove me down to the shop for bathroom privileges and brought me back to wait with Joey until the wrecker came. At one point I thought I might have to knock on someone's door and beg to use their facilities. ) After being out in the very cold, windy rain we got home about 2 hours later. The adjuster won't be able to assess the damage until Wednesday. Some of you remember that the reason I had this car in the first place is that we were hit last February, and our last car was totaled.

I wonder if this one will meet the same fate...

Joey and I are both very sore today. My side and right chest area are tender from the seat belt. I think Joey is going to the doctor tomorrow morning to get checked out. His hand is swollen, and he has some bruising on his back. He can't raise his arm to get his shirt on, and he is an auto mechanic. It hurts to laugh--maybe a broken rib. I dont know.

Our family might have to stop celebrating holidays: last Halloween Jackson had swine flu...Memorial Day he had pneumonia...right after Father's Day daddy had a heart attack...4th of July Hudson had a stomach virus...Thanksgiving Hudson had his seizure...and now this. ENOUGH, thank you.

We are truly thankful that in all these hardships, we have all come out safe and sound, just a bit frazzled. God is good!!! As Psalm 121:7-8 says, "The Lord will keep you from all harm-He will watch over your life: the Lord will watch your coming and going both now and forevermore."
Be safe everyone,

The Real Meaning of Christmas

2010-12-12T06:50:00.006-06:00

I am joining in the Nativity Party at

http://happierthanapiginmud.blogspot.com/2010/12/welcome-to-reason-for-season-party.html

I have also linked to a second Nativity party I found here.
http://www.crapivemade.com/

This lighted Bethlehem nativity set was purchased from Costco years ago. I have only used it one other year, and to be honest, I kinda forgot I had it. I have a Dickens Village, Snow Village, and a Disney Village, so I guess it got lost in the shuffle. My Mother reminded me I had it and asked me to use it this year.
This is a closeup of the manger scene.

Other shops and homes in the village.

This is on the entry table.

My mother took ceramic classes about 35 years ago, and she made this beautiful nativity set. I use it every year.

Not really a nativity, but a sweet collection of glittered churches.

The nativity plate on the mantel was a thrift store find. The angel came from Old Time Pottery.

The Santos Wisemen came from Southern Living at Home about 5 years ago.

Another resin set on a side table.

A pewter set on the sofa table.

A balsa wood set on the buffet in the dining room. I found this a few weeks ago at Goodwill.

I hope you enjoyed my nativity collection. I look forward to seeing all the others.

It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life and the holidays, but remember that Jesus is the reason for this season. We can have life eternal because He came to Earth and gave His life for us.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life".

John 3:16

Blessings,

Oh, Christmas Tree

2010-12-09T19:28:00.009-06:00

I seem to have more trees than I realized, so I am joining in Thrifty Decor Chick's tree party. There are already over 350 trees to view. Click here to see them all.
http://thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/2010/12/its-christmas-tree-party.htm Here are some of mine. The first is a lighted tree made by my aunt and uncle and given to me in 1973. They used to make ceramics, and it has the date inscribed on the bottom. I put it out every year..They also made this lighted white tree around that same time for my grandmother. She used to display it in her front window. Now I have it, and treasure it, too. The ceramic nativity was made years ago by my mother.
I have a small glittery candle tree on the dining room table. I will post the tablescape next Thursday.
Another picture of my beaded tree I wrote about in my last post...

And our big tree in the den. I really couldn't find a place to put all the ornaments I have collected over the years.

And my favorite tree pic of all...my adorable grandsons. Even their shirts have trees on them.

That just makes me smile.

Christmas Cloches

2010-12-09T16:56:00.011-06:00

Today, I am joining Marty's cloche party, as are many others in blogland. The first cloche I will share is under my entry table. I am using the theme of Silent Night in my Christmas decor this year. I have several little lighted villages, but this year I am enjoying the Little Town of Bethlehem. I bought it many years ago at Costco.
You can see the angel under glass on the lower shelf.

Here is a closer view. I placed her there with a few of our family Bibles, the one on top given to Joey and me for a wedding present almost 30 years ago by our pastor.

"Behold, I bring you good news of great joy...Today...a Savior has been born to you:He is Christ the Lord".

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men".

My second cloche is a miniature Christmas tree that I made about 35 years ago.

The kit was from a craft store...it started out as wire, thousands of little green seed beads, and miniature toys.

I strung the beads on wires and twisted them to form branches, and twisted them together to form the tree. Then I strung little white beads to make the garland, and hung the hundreds of tiny ornaments on the tree. My mother knew what she was doing buying this kit. It kept me very busy and probably out of a lot of trouble. You know what they say about idle hands.

A little bicycle and doll await Christmas morning under the tree.

This little cloche has been used every year for the past 35 years. We just called it a dome...didn't even know what a cloche was until I started blogging.

I will share more of my decorations as the month continues.

"Oh holy night...the stars are brightly shining".

I want to enjoy this holiday season with my family, and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season!

JOY!!!

Check out all the other cloches here http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-cloche-party-welcome.html

Thanksgiving Day...not what we expected...but very thankful

2010-11-28T15:47:00.005-06:00

The turkey was brined and ...
refrigerated overnight.

The whole family was here, even though little Hudson had been feeling so badly and running a high fever. The tables were set with care...

Right as I was removing the turkey from the oven, Hudson had a febrile seizure, and we had to call an ambulance to take him to the hospital. It lasted for about 6 minutes...the longest and scariest 6 minutes of my life. For a minute there we weren't sure if he was breathing, so I sent Shawn to fetch my stethoscope from my bag so I could listen to him. Was I ever relieved when I heard that little heart beating and air rushing in and out of his lungs. He was unresponsive after it was over until the ambulance came. Would you believe that God sent one of the paramedics that Shannon went to high school with. She was so relieved to see him--we all were. They started an IV and took him to the hospital where I work. When they started the IV he screamed and he cried all the way to the hospital. We left Mother and Daddy and Shawn and Darris here with Jackson. Joey and I rushed to the hospital and when we walked into his room ,he was still crying. Be still my heart, I have never heard a cry that sounded so good to my grandmother ears.
Here is a picture from Shannon's phone from the emergency room. By then he was beginning to feel much better. Praise the Lord. We didn't get home until late that night, so we reheated everything, and ate our dinner about 9:00P.M. Shawn and Darris had carved the turkey and they all had lunch and then put away all the leftovers. They played with Jackson and kept him occupied all afternoon. They were worn out by the time we got home. Even though it certainly was not what we had planned, we are so thankful that God has blessed us so greatly. After dinner, they just spent the night with us and took Hudson to the doctor for followup the next morning. Jackson stayed at our house and played on Buddy's tractor. He loves that tractor! When Hudson returned from the doctor, he had his first tractor ride with Buddy. He is also a natural tractor boy.

Then he got to sit on the Gator...no he can't drive it yet, but he thinks he is.

We then found some little elf friends who come around Christmastime and report back to Santa how good children have been. We named them Elvis, Pizie, and Trixie. So Jackson and Hudson, you boys better watch out...Santa Claus is coming to town.

To top it all off, we went to Joey's family get-together last night, and while the kids were roasting marshmellows, Jackson got hit with a flaming marshmellow. It stuck to his sweater...yes still in flames. So my niece's husband put out the fire on his shirt. Can you believe our weekend?

I am for one glad it's over, but again so very thankful everything turned out fine. I hope you all had great Thanksgivings, and God bless you everyone.

Let's Eat Pie

2010-11-24T20:27:00.002-06:00

Today, I have been preparing for our Thanksgiving meal we will enjoy tomorrow with our daughters, my parents, and the grandbabies. We will have turkey, dressing, gravy, mashed potatoes, corn pudding, green bean casserole, lima beans, and apple pies. I just took the pies out of the oven, and does my house ever smell good!

Apple pies...

I went into Williams Sonoma yesterday and found these cute little leaf cutters on clearance.

It reminds me of playing with Play-Doh.

And I kinda made a mess.

Two pies ready to go into the oven.

The recipe is one that my husband made many years ago and entered it in a church cookbook from the church where I grew up . It is such an easy but very delicious recipe.

They turned out very pretty, if I do say so myself.

Now, if I can just keep everyone out of them until tomorrow.

It is tempting, though.

Let's have pie. Today I am linking with
http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/2010/11/foodie-friday-thanksgiving-plus-another.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DesignsByGollum+%28Designs+by+Gollum%29

Enjoy your day tomorrow with family and friends. I plan to do the same.

Thanksgiving Table

2010-11-18T17:12:00.003-06:00

My Thanksgiving table is set.

I'll share a preview with you. I have had all these items for years. I like to shop my house and the attic for table decorations.

The candle stands are from Southern Living at Home.

The soup tureen is from Goodwill. I encircled it with some gourds.

I used some wicker chargers that came from Marshall's.

The salad plates also are from Goodwill.

The little napkin rings are some blessings wall decorations I found last year on clearance from Wal-Mart for 87 cents each. I knew I would use them one day.

The table is set for 6 now, but we will have a full table on Thursday.

I will probably add the leaves to the table.

I am entering Tablescape Thursday from Between Naps on the Porch.
http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2010/11/awesome-giveaway-from-mikasa-welcome-to.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BetweenNapsOnThePorch+%28BETWEEN+NAPS+ON+THE+PORCH%29
Check out some beautiful tables there.
She also has a fabulous Mikasa china giveaway. hurry over and sign up.You will be glad you did.

I hope everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving with your families.

Look whooooo's one...

2010-11-15T16:33:00.007-06:00

Whooo knew 1 year ago that our hearts would have room to love another person as much as we love this little guy. Wow, what a difference a year makes.

Fast forward one year and we are planning a birthday party. Shannon made the invitations at my kitchen table. She decided to have an owl party.

Every party has to have a theme,of course, and we like to take it and run .

Each person received a personalized owl invitation.

They turned out so cute.

This is how Hudson "helped" with his party planning.

My Daddy uses a wheelchair a lot and he entertained Jackson while we worked on invitations by playing with Lego on the tray table of his walker. They must have built an entire city.

I set up a vignette in the entryway . Once again we used sticks to display an assortment of owls, pine cones and acorn ornaments spray painted green, blue, and orange , and I taped silk leaves to the bare branches for Fall color.

These cute little owls came from Cracker Barrel.

Here are the party favors I made. I cut out foam owl heads and glued on some googly eyes. They are attached to clear treat bags filled with candy corn and gummy worms.

Candy in bright colors and a photo of the birthday boy round out the display...

Our table featured bright colors on napkins, party hats, and balloons.
I made the party hats by tracing around hats I purchased from the Dollar Tree and then cutting them out of paper I made from scanning and printing a piece of owl fabric I found at the fabric store. I hot glued pom poms to the top of them and around the bottom of Hudson's hat.

You can see Hudson's hat on his highchair tray. I expected him to pull it off his head, but he really did wear it, as you will see. I tied the fabric over his highchair for a "slipcover".
Balloons were tied to the chandelier.

I made cupcakes and decorated them as owls using Oreos with Junior Mints glued on with icing for the eyes and Runts used for their beaks. I ran out of chocolate icing, so I had some caramel icing on hand, and used vanilla wafers on the lighter colored owls. Their ears were cut off wedges of cookies with icing piped on top..

I made a cupcake stand by gluing 2 wooden plates separated by a wooden candlestick. I originally had this on the cupcake table at Shawn's wedding, and I painted it turquoise.

Shannon created a Happy 1st Birthday garland for the fireplace with her Cricut machine.
And of course, there is the chalkboard art with an owl that says "You're a real hoot".
Shannon spray painted some photos of Hudson throughout his first year and placed them here and there.
You will notice her delicious "Puppy Chow" served in an acorn bowl I found 2 weeks ago at the Goodwill.

When I was making cupcakes, I made Hudson a "smash" cake of his own.

Mother and Daddy gave him this precious chair from Pottery Barn monogrammed with his name.

It seems like every child in our family gets that same chair for their first birthday.
He liked it. Oh, and he is wearing a shirt Shannon made with an owl applique. So cute!

This is their cute family.
Amazingly all looking at the camera.

Here I am with the birthday boy.
I found an owl craft ornament at Target one day, so we got enough for all the kids to make one. These kids, all cousins, are good at projects.
And then, the much anticipated moment. Hudson got to dig in to his cake. He loved it, as you can tell...

It was a nice afternoon with our family celebrating this event.

After we took down some of the balloons, Jackson and his cousin decided to have a balloon "fight".

I can't believe a year has passed so quickly. Life is but a vapor. Enjoy every moment of it. One day we will look at these boys as grown men and wonder where the years went. Until then, I will just savor the times I get to spend with my family. Thank you for letting me share this special day with you.

It;s been a HOOT!!!

Trick or Treat

2010-11-01T18:04:00.003-05:00

I only had 2 little trick-or-treaters for Halloween. They were my favorite 2 little boys in the whole world.

Here is Jackson as Buzz Lightyear...(his costume cracked me up--it didn't leave much room for his head and neck).
and Hudson as one of the Toy Story aliens...

I made his alien hat. I bought a little helmet fron Dollar Tree and hot glued green felt to it. Then I hot glued ping-pong balls for eyes and made some pointy ears. I think he is the cutest alien I have ever seen. (Not that I've actually ever seen aliens).

Here is their family, and everyone is looking at the camera...wonder of wonders! They were on their way to the church carnival.
And finally...look what they did to this baby. Jason went out and bought a big pumpkin on sale and carved the cutest Jack-o-lantern ever.

Be still my heart.

Pumpkin Carving

2010-10-25T21:11:00.005-05:00

The hayride we went on last week included a pumpkin for each person, and they all ended up at our house. The kids decided they wanted to have a pumpkin carving party, so I made up a big pot of chili and they all came over.

I love pumpkins. I had them lined up by the front door with a pot of mums.

It finally rained here, so we had to dry off the pumpkins before we could even carve them.

Here everyone is getting ready to create...

Shawn is in deep concentration...

Jackson is rolling up his sleeves to help Shannon and Jason...
He helped scoop out the "guts"

One moment it was quiet...everyone was busy carving their own pumpkins..., and Jackson announced, "Look, I'm using a sharp tool". Now that will get your attention real fast.

Mother and Daddy kept Hudson entertained while I took pics.

We laughed a lot.

Made silly faces

and posed for pictures

Shawn and Darris with their spiderweb and owl pumpkins...

This is Darris' pumpkin lit up on the stairs.

You can see two of my little mice I cut from construction paper. The patterns come from Martha Stewart's website.

Here are the pumpkin carvers and their masterpieces.
Shannon and Jason carved Buzz Lightyear and Woody from Toy Story. Joey stuck with the traditional Jack-O-Lantern face.

Spooky...

It was a fun night. I hope our pumpkins last until Halloween.

Happy carving,

Family Fall Fun

2010-10-17T10:47:00.010-05:00

Yesterday, my family decided to go on a picnic at a local farm. I threw together some apple muffins and Rice Krispy treats, some drinks, chips, hotdogs and buns. I even got out some thermoses to put boiling water in for hot chocolate and cider, but the day was so hot we were not interested. We also thought it would be a good opportunity to take some pictures of the boys. Well, we got some good pictures, but most of them were only good of one boy or the other. Why is it so hard to get two kids to look at you at the same time?

There was an old wagon we put them in...

and an antique buggy...

Hudson enjoyed the table full of pumpkins.
The boys played in a vat of feed corn.

There were swings...

things to climb on...

a bonfire...we cooked hot dogs

Even Mother and Daddy got to come. They don't get to go much, so I know it did them good, even though I am sure they are very tired.

Marshmellows are good, and messy.

Then we went on a hayride to a pumpkin patch where we got to choose our own pumpkin

Here is Shannon's family.

and the Newlyweds, Shawn and Darris

Jackson had to hunt for just the right pumpkin.

Shannon and Hudson guarded their pumpkins.

Even Joey and I found ours.

Here are all my kids.

and 2 little barefooted boys in the hay...

We had such a beautiful, although a bit hot, day. Sometimes the best memories are made when you just up and go do something without too much planning.

Happy Fall, y'all.

Fall Chalkboard Pantry Door

2010-09-27T17:42:00.003-05:00

It was painful to erase my favorite things for summer from my pantry chalkboard door,

but seasons come and go, and change is good.

My little door has a new look for Fall.

If you can't tell by the photo, it says:

Gods Little Pumpkin

He picks you from the patch and washes you...

cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff...

removes the seeds of doubt, hate, and greed.

Then He carves you a new smiling face

and puts His light inside you to shine

for all the world to see.

I am so thankful He did this for me, and I hope I can be a light in a dark world to shine for Him.

Fall blessings,

Creepy Entry Vignette

2010-09-21T16:58:00.006-05:00

It is 100 degrees here and I am decorating for Halloween.

Something about that just doesn't feel right.

I will share a little project I did a while back.

I bought this ceramic boot from the thrift store and painted it black.

It reminded me of a witch's boot. I plan to place some dried Fall flowers in it.

Before...

After...

I creepified the entry table with "poison", pumpkins, ghosts, witches, crows, and a spider or two.

I used the idea from Shawn's wedding to cut some branches for a scary tree.

A little witch has landed amongst the crows and spiderwebs.

a jar of frogs and spiders...

The labels were from The Graphics Fairy. I printed them and wet the paper, and then sprinkled with instant coffee crystals to age the labels. I have taped them to balsamic vineger, cherry syrup, and an empty bottle.

This little pumpkin "snowglobe" I have had for years...

You know I can't have a post without a little chalkboard...

and some cute little ghosts...

Why not place a skull under a cloche?

The skull and fake barbed wire were from Dollar Tree.

A cauldron of candy eyeballs and gummy bodyparts...

I guess only the grandson will eat those.

A nice little crow...

Halloween nesting dolls...

I bought this broom from a festival where the man was making them. The color is great for Halloween.

I don't usually decorate for Halloween, but I decided it would be fun, and not too scary. As soon as Halloween is over, this tabletop will transform into Fall and owls for Hudson's birthday party. I will share that in November.
In the meantime...I am glad you stopped in for a "spell".

Happy Halloween.

Cotton Festival

2010-09-11T14:11:00.006-05:00

Today we went to the Cotton Festival in Somerville, Tennessee. It started with a 5K run for charity. Shawn and Darris entered the race, and we went to cheer them on.
Here the are with another running friend, Kelly.

The newlyweds before the race. The starting line (about 400 participants)... Here they come after the first round...Jackson wasn't feeling well, but he just had to come and see them run today. You could tell he wasn't himself. Shannon said he coughed a lot during the night, so I brought my stethoscope in the car. After the race, I listened to his lungs, and he was wheezing . His breathing was shallow, so they decided to take him right to the doctor. Well, the little man has pneumonia. They did a breathing treatment and sent him home with an inhaler and antibiotics. They are watching him like a hawk. We knew he didn't feel good, but you wouldn't have known he was that sick. He just loves his Aunt Shawn and Uncle Darris. Hudson held a sign, too. Well , he mostly crumpled his...
Darris is coming to the finish ... Shawn is rounding the final corner...Shawn and Darris after the race. Jackson told them,"Good job guys".

We enjoyed visiting with them after the race.
Here they are with their cotton bale "trophies". Shawn was the second female to cross the finish line, and she won first in her age group . Darris came in second in his division.

It was a nice day for a festival. You can see the courthouse and the town square. Kinda reminds me of Mayberry. After the award presentation, we enjoyed shopping the vendors, looking at antique cars on display, and eating. Shawn had a hamburger, Darris had BBQ nachos and a funnel cake, and Joey had a corn dog. I had a Philly steak sandwich with onions and cheese. That is "fair food" to me. Oh, the smells of all the foods cooking were wonderful. This time of year there are several festivals around here. I hope you all get to enjoy a festival or two in your area.

Labor Day Fun

2010-09-09T18:38:00.013-05:00

We hosted a low country boil for Labor Day for the family. Here I am holding my 2 favorite little boys in the whole world.

Joey (aka "Buddy") enjoyed chillin in the hammock with Jackson

Joey was the cook for the day...

In one pot we had potatoes, corn, smoked sausage, onions, asparagus, carrots, and shrimp.

While the food cooked, we relaxed..

looks like Mother and Daddy were dancing...

(they weren't)... and we played...

and visited.When the food was ready , the men emptied out the pot full of good eats...

right onto the table.

accompanied by Shawn's delicious pasta salad, watermelon, and bread .

YUM...

After we ate, we played some more.The guys were fascinated with a blue tailed skink. Weseem to have them everywhere...one of the joys of life in the country.
The boys cooled off in their pools. Shannon actually got out the shampoo and gave them their baths outside, another perk to living in the country.

Hudson really enjoyed the "bath".

They put on their PJ's, and we ate chocolate cake and ice cream for dessert.

Shannon made the cake.

We have been making this delicious cake for years in my family.

Here is my piece.

It was a fun day, but we were all tired.

Thanks for sharing in our fun.

Paint the Scales Red

2010-08-21T19:09:00.008-05:00

One of my "treasures" I found at the estate sale I went to Saturday was a brass scale.

I am not a big fan of brass, so I decided it would look better red. I never remember to take a before picture, so I ran and grabbed my camera. I had already started painting one of the dishes.

Looking better after the first coat...

Now...I like it much better. I am trying to decide where to put it.

That's the ticket...a toilet paper holder in the powder room.

I am linking to Metamorphosis Monday

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2010/08/welcome-to-84th-metamorphosis-monday.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BetweenNapsOnThePorch+%28BETWEEN+NAPS+ON+THE+PORCH%29

Sheila

Pear Preserves

2010-08-21T18:53:00.006-05:00

I went to an estate sale yesterday, and found a few "treasures". One of the homeowner's granddaughters was selling pears 10 for $1.00. I bought 10 and came home and peeled them...

I covered them in sugar for a few hours.

Covered the bowl with a vintage towel (purchased also at the aforementioned sale)...

I added a little lemon juice, a dash of salt, and a smidge of cinnamon. Then I cooked them for a long time (several hours) til tender and golden to make some preserves.... Here is my one jar...

My sister in law, Ginger, brought me this beautiful loaf of honey wheat bread yesterday from a nearby Amish bakery.

So...this morning, I toasted it up...

slathered it in butter...

and preserves...

Delicious!

A Day With Our Favorite Boys

2010-08-08T19:38:00.005-05:00

The grandsons spent the night with us
Friday night.

Saturday morning we took them to Home Depot for the kids workshop. Joey helped Jackson build a school bus pencil holder.

Hudson slept most of the time.

Jackson was really good with the hammer.

Here is his pencil holder. He seemed quite proud of it. It really turned out cute.

Then, we went to Build A Bear and Jackson made a puppy. We found a cute little dog for Hudson, too.

After you build the pet, you take it to the "bathtub" area and give it a bath and a good fluffing.

We had some lunch and went to the park for a while.

When we took them home, Jackson put on his Buzz Lightyear costume to match his new puppy.

Then he decided to cool off in the sprinkler.

We had a wonderful time with them. And, yes, we were all tired!

Grilled Pizza

2010-08-08T19:21:00.005-05:00

Tonight we enjoyed some grilled pizzas courtesy of http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2010/08/make-your-own-pizza-dough-recipe.html

She shares the recipe and if you click to her more recent post, she shares grilling directions.

I gathered the ingredients, all of which I had in the pantry.

It is really quite a simple recipe.

I got out my Domino's Pizza menu to get some inspiration. We used sausage, pepperoni, olives, sauteed onions, mushrooms, and cheeses.

I forgot to take a picture of the dough in the bowl or rolling them out,

but you've seen it before...

We placed them on the grill just as Stephanie from Under the Table directs

nice and bubbly, and melty

The finished pizza...

They were gooooood! Try them, and you will see. Next time I will buy some pulled pork and make BBQ pizzas using BBQ sauce instead of pizza sauce.

The possibilities are endless.

RED Paint for my Tired Rocking Chairs

2010-08-01T14:00:00.007-05:00

This weekend was quite productive, I will say. We started out by balancing statements for 3 bank accounts , and going through old files and thinning them out. I hate those kind of projects, but I do feel good once they are done. We had a huge bag of "throw away" papers, and a large bag to burn the next time we light the "burn pile". We live in the country, so our debris has to be burned periodically.

Four of the five dogs got baths. Our backs would not hold out to bathe Keely. We will get to her next time.

I did 5 loads of laundry yesterday (I have my parents laundry to do, too) and two more today. Joey did some yardwork, and we are tired.

BUT, we did get a project done that I will share with you. Here is a picture of the front porch at Jackson's birthday party in early July. The rocking chairs were looking a little tired...so...

We painted them...

RED...

so much better...

don't you think?

Here is the first one in her place...

and the finished project...

I am so pleased at the way they turned out.
Red makes me Happy!

Today, I am linking this to http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/ for another Metamorphosis Monday. Check out everyone else's projects.

Chalkboard Paint Party

2010-07-29T14:19:00.009-05:00

I am linking to http://www.thestoriesofa2z.com/2010/07/chalkboard-paint-party.html, for her chalkboard paint party. I know most of you have seen these chalkboards, but humor me a bit, and allow me to share them all in one post.

This is what I have on my pantry door currently.

A list of my favorite things...

My rooster in the breakfast room to welcome guests...

This little board was used along with others displaying various Bible verses about love at my daughter's wedding in April...

My memo board redo from just a few weeks ago...

The pantry door last Easter (sorry about the bad lighting)...

a heartfelt sentiment...

My sugar canister in the kitchen...

another message on the rooster...

Christmas board...

more Christmas...

and Fall...

Thanksgiving...

Summertime...

Mother's Day...

Easter...

countdown before the wedding..."Happy memories begin when we marry the ones we love, and then bloom when we love the ones we marry"...

I love chalkboard paint markers. I try to find a new idea to share on the chalkboards throughout the house for each season.

Memo Board Redo

2010-07-19T07:27:00.005-05:00

I picked up a memo board for less than $2.00 from the Goodwill a few weeks ago. It has a bulletin board at the top and chalkboard on the bottom. There is an inset just for decoration. It was dated and badly needed a facelift, so out came the paint. A coat of paint helps the even ugliest items. Sort of like make-up, ha. Here is what it looked like before...

And, here it is AFTER...

I had some cute file folders that I cut to fit in the inset to cover up that old dated design, painted it bright yellow and distressed it a bit. I had all the supplies on hand, so not to bad for less than two bucks. I am linking to Susan's Metamorphosis Monday. Check out everyone's transformations.
http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2010/07/welcome-to-79th-metamorphosis-monday.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BetweenNapsOnThePorch+%28BETWEEN+NAPS+ON+THE+PORCH%29

Till next time...

Tool Time Birthday Party

2010-07-13T17:22:00.008-05:00

It's tool time! This is what I've been up to lately--making memories. Jackson turned 3 and we had his birthday party at our house. He loves tools so much that
Shannon wanted to have a tool party. It is hard to find decorations for tools that aren't construction, Handy Manny, or race cars. So, we just made our own. Here are her cute invitations. She printed them on her computer herself.

She made a birthday banner using her Cricut machine. I pulled out a couple of Joey's

collectible cars for the mantel.

Shannon made a sign for the door. We decided to make the house into a "repair shop".

I had an extra water hose , and I hot glued some tool cut-outs from Hobby Lobby on it for our wreath. I try to always have a wreath on my front doors.

Come on in and join our fun.

A work apron, some tools,goggles, and a shop rag on the door.

The kitchen was our "break room".

I blew an air horn and yelled out.."break time", when it was time for refreshments.

That got everyone's attention.

Shannon found the Whimsy Cookie Company, and bought the cutest tool cookies for party favors. They were yummy, and oh, so cute. Check out her cookie designs here:
http://www.whimsycookieco.blogspot.com/

We put them in a tool box to pass out to the kids. You almost can't tell the cookies from the toy tools on the table.

We, of course, played on the tool theme for our food. I bought some oil pans from Autozone to serve snacks. We had "nuts and bolts" (Chex party mix)...
"spare tires" (mini Oreo cookies)...
"grease monkey munch" (also called puppy chow or monkey munch made with Chex cereal and peanut butter and chocolate covered with powdered sugar)...so good...

The drinks were served from the "filling station"...unleaded, diesel,

high octane...you get the idea...

We made a project area, or "workshop" for the kids. Hobby Lobby had some Vacation Bible School projects that we found for the kids to paint and decorate. They were pickup trucks and tow trucks.

We made the cake to resemble a tool box.

I bought a drip pan from Autozone to place the cake on, and we placed tools around it. I hung a drop cord light and some balloons from the chandeliers.

Shannon made some cute cupcake toppers...

Here is Jackson, our little repair man. I found a shirt at Goodwill, and took it to a local monogram shop to put his name on the chest. I love how it turned out.

Hudson had to get in on the act with a hammer on his shirt. We just ironed it on.

Shannon made her shirt. She is the "shop manager". Here is her family...
The birthday boy loved his cake.

Here he is blowing out his candles.

She used a toy saw to cut the cake...

I love my little mechanic.

We are crazy about these boys.
Jackson enjoyed opening presents...

He had some help from his cousins who admired his new race car...

The kids went outside to play.That swingset got a real workout that day.

Happy Birthday!

Would you look at those dirty feet..

We all had a great time.

I know there were a lot of pictures, but sometimes that's the only way to tell the whole story.

Thank you for letting me share our party. Now I guess we have to start planning Hudson's first birthday party in November. It never ends.

June Highlights-Almost A Day Late and a Dollar Short

2010-06-30T18:47:00.005-05:00

With all that has been going on I haven't had time to post my June highlight display. Well, it IS still June for a few more hours...

My parents celebrated their anniversary on the 15th of June...their 53rd.
Here is their wedding album, invitation, and a matchbook and a little box with their names and wedding date printed on top. As was the custom, a piece, a very tiny piece, of cake was given to to the guests to take home. Legend was that single ladies would place the cake box under their pillows and dream about the one they would someday marry.
There is even a napkin folded from their wedding in the box. Cheers...the reception was held in my grandparents' back yard.

The getaway.

Beautiful hands and rings.

This poem was a gift I gave them on their 50th anniversary.

This picture was taken at our family dinner celebration for their golden anniversary...50 years.

What A Difference A Day Makes

2010-06-30T18:42:00.003-05:00

You saw just a few days ago Mama bird was feeding her baby in the nest. Well, look who flew the coop.

Don't Worry...God Provides

2010-06-27T17:01:00.003-05:00

Are you a worrier? I lean that way, but try to remind myself that God is the one in charge. The Bible says to consider the sparrow...it doesn't worry about what it will eat or drink...or anything else for that matter. . God provides. Well He has provided for us this week. My Daddy had a heart attack last Monday, and went by ambulance to the hospital. They did a heart cath and found blockage, but it took two tries to get a stent in due to a severe reaction to the benadryl they premedicated him with. We will surely never give him Benadryl again! He is home and doing well...just weak from a week in bed. Praise the Lord for is provision. The photo is just outside our window. Mama bird landed just at the time I took this picture. Does anyone know what kind of bird that is?

A Few of My Favorite Things...for summer

2010-06-05T18:57:00.005-05:00

I do love summertime...and the livin is easy...

I have decorated my chalkboard pantry door with some of my favorite summer memories...

watermelon, swimming, lemonade, ice cream, flowers, green grass, strawberries, sno-cones, screened porch, vacation, popsicles, bicycles, picnics, fireflies, sunshine, tomatoes...

I forgot about flipflops and going barefooted.

Summertime has always been a favorite time for me. I have fond memories of all these things growing up. What are your favorite summertime memories?

Spring Planting

2010-05-27T15:11:00.005-05:00

We finally got around to planting some plants and flowers around here. We have been so busy with wedding plans, but we needed some color.I have a rooster planter that I planted some Mexican heather in. You know I do love my roosters.

My garden flag welcoming guests, ...another thing I like...birds. The rocking chairs need to be refinished or painted. Can't decide what I want to do with them yet.
I found this cute herb planter tucked full of pretty flowers.

I enjoy sitting on the porch on a cool day.

We put some ornamental grass and sweet potato vine in the planter.

Here is a funny story about this plant. It is an ANTIQUE! Yes, it really is. When I was about 14 years old, I walked down to a nearby plant store and bought this plant. I carried it home in a tiny dime store sack, worried all the way that the wind that day would break a leaf. Well , here it is 35 years later. Over the years we have had 2 or 3 different dogs who have chewed it down to just a stalk. My grandson has pulled leaves off it, and I have not treated it as nicely as I should have. But it is TOUGH. I plan to repot it this year and give it some new soil. If I do it would probably die from shock.

I keep my garden shoes by the back door for easy access.

I have 2 hydrangeas we transplanted from my parents house. They didn't look too good last year, but they are blooming this year. Hopefully they will make it.

Joey made this garden bench for me several years ago. In fact, he made 3 of them. We planted
some Knock-Out roses in the planters. They smell good. I may make a more permanent rose bed later in the year, but they didn't cost any more than a pot full of bedding plants would have. This is where I sit and watch Jackson play on the swingset. Need to get some grass growing here.

Aren't the colors in these hanging baskets pretty?

Love the pinks...

I have several ferns on the screened porch. I really love to sit outside at night back there. You would not believe how loud the frogs can get.

I hope you enjoyed my little garden tour.

May Display-birthdays and an anniversary

2010-05-10T12:18:00.006-05:00

A friend of my Mother's used to set a display highlighting those in her family who had birthdays, anniversaries, or special occasions each month. We decided it would be fun, so here is our display for the month of May. I am linking this to http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/2010/05/12th-table-top-tuesday-reworking.html. Others have submitted some nice displays.

Shannon and Jason will celebrate their anniversary this month. I can't believe it has already been 4 years. Happy Anniversary, and may you have many, many more.

It is also Jason's birthday month.
Happy Birthday, Jason. You have been a great son-in-law.

My late grandparents, Jim and Marie Tatum also had May birthdays, so I will let this display be a tribute to them as well.

For well over 50 years they were very devoted to one another.

They worked hard, lived a simple life, and were very happy together all those years.I am so thankful for their Christian love and example.

Joey and I have been married almost 29 years, and yes, our love has grown stronger for each other, too. I pray this for both our daughters and their husbands.

I have been playing around with my camera. I still have a lot to learn, but I just recently learned about the Blue Hour. In our area it is around 8:15 P.M. The blue sky looks so vivid in the background during this period.

No professional photography here, but it is fun to share.

I also experimented with a few photos of the house.

I think it's kind of neat.

Well that is my display for May. I hope you enjoyed it.

Mothers Day Blessings

2010-05-09T10:09:00.005-05:00

It is said of that Proverbs 31 woman,"Her children rise up and call her blessed". Well, I am like her in that way...I am blessed. I may not measure up in other aspects of her character, but I am definitely blessed! I am still fortunate to have my Mother with me, to have had a wonderful mother-in-law and two dear grandmothers who now reside in Heaven, and two beautiful (on the inside and outwardly too ) daughters, 2 great sons-in-law, and 2 precious grandsons. See, I told you I am blessed. Happy Mother's Day to all mothers.

On a lighter note...

We had our get together last night with the girls and families. I received 2 cute cards, both humorous.

Shannon made this for my Mother's Day gift. First, I'll show you the sweet picture she took of the boys. I just love those smiles. And she made the cute magnets by gluing scrapbook paper to the backs of glass discs and placed magnets on them.

Then she covered a piece of metal with burlap, and Jason drilled holes in it for a ribbon. I love my message board. She said she has blisters on her fingers from the hot glue seeping up through the holes in the burlap. I can relate after making that "W" wreath.

I am proud to hang it in my laundry room. I am in there during many of my waking hours, so I will certainly get to enjoy it there. You know, like that Proverbs 31 woman taking care of the needs of her household, ha.

Shawn gave me a rock as my gift from her. It is a beautiful piece of petrified wood she and Darris got me from their honeymoon to the Grand Canyon.
I just love rocks...

Look at all the pretty colors...

and layers...

She knows how I like roosters, so she also brought some folk art and a stone piece from the Indians out there.

I asked her to pick out some earrings for me while she was there, and she found these. I can't wait to wear them, and she surprised me with a pendant to match.

Darris and Shawn shared their pictures as a slide show on the TV for all of us to enjoy. They were breathtaking. Several looked like postcards. They experienced a nice stay at a bed and breakfast, hiking, snow, swimming at the pool, biking, camping at the Grand Canyon,not to mention driving over 3400 miles in less than 2 weeks, and so much more. They will have wonderful memories for a lifetime.
I am so proud of my entire family, and they have made it nice to be a mother. I hope everyone is as blessed this year as I have been. Happy Mother's Day.

Spring/Garden Vignette

2010-05-05T14:21:00.006-05:00

I have had a day off from work today-the first with nothing I absolutely had to do in a long time. We finally went through all the boxes from the wedding, and got them carried upstairs. I am tired! So...today I have been puttering around and doing laundry all day. Just trying to get caught up. I will share some of my Spring decorations with you.

If you have been following my blog, I'm sure you have noticed that I like birds (among my many other collections) . This little birdie tea light holder came from Dollar Tree.
The cut glass card holder came from Goodwill. I keep a stack of Bible verses in it. This verse says, "Cast your cares on the Lord, and He will sustain you" from Psalm 55:22-that is just what I need right now. God is good!

This framed print also came from Goodwill. I bring it out every Spring with my birds.

I spent some time this past weekend making a Spring / garden vignette on my entry table. I placed the moss covered "W" from Shawn's wedding on it. She will probably take it from me when she gets home from her honeymoon. Maybe she won't remember. I am linking to Marty's party a little late http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/2010/05/12th-table-top-tuesday-reworking.html.
Here, you can see the W a little better. Joey cut it out for me and I covered it with a box of sheetmoss we got from our florist. When we were looking for a large moss covered letter, the cheapest one I could find was over $100.00 and about $45.00 for shipping. Too much for me to pay. We just used several layers of foam core board and lots of hot glue. After burning my fingers several times, I see why they are so expensive, but I do love the way it turned out.
This is the bottom shelf of my display.

I added a garden finial from the flea market, a little "Bless this home" sign from Hobby Lobby, a cloche from Tuesday Morning, and a wire topiary cage from the garden center.
The wood flower box just came from Goodwill a few weeks ago as did the metal scoop.

My bunnies are also a thrifty find. The metal and glass terrarium was found on my parents backporch when they moved. I filled it with moss covered rocks.

I clipped seed packets to my wire cage with some mini clothespins.

I just love those little clips.

I also brought in an old watering can from the garden.

This metal basket from Goodwill holds some Springy plates, also from you know where.

I placed a nest on a pedestal in my cloche.

The little robin was found on my most recent goodwill trip. She is from a Hallmark collection, and was still in the box.

I probably shouldn't tell everyone all my secret places to shop. Ha.

We have been enjoying some beautiful weather here in the Memphis area over the past few days, but we were hit hard this past weekend. We had 14 inches of rain, and our house was struck by lightning very early Sunday morning. We were without cable and internet until yesterday. The cable guy said the wire to the cable box was fried. We still have some phones out, and the power surge fried my TV in the laundry room and the power cord/charger to my computer. I replaced the cord yesterday, and couldn't believe a cord could cost $80.00. I now have a surge protector between it and the outlet. I am just thankful the computer didn't get fried, and we were so fortunate the house didn't catch on fire. I do know it woke all of us from a dead sleep when it hit. I shouldn't complain though, with all those poor people in Nashville with the flooding they are experiencing. Roads are still closed, and much devastation. It is bad up there and will be for some time. Please keep them in your prayers. My cousin and her family live in Franklin, but they were spared the flooding at their home.

Hopefully this nice weather will hold out for all the cleanup that will have to be done.

Take care. It is good to be back online.

Shawn and Darris' Wedding-the night the lights went out in Memphis

2010-04-26T08:56:00.020-05:00

The day started with tornado watches all around the area. We prayed for pretty weather, and as the day went on, we got our desire. Not that it all went off without a hitch, but it was still a wonderful day.

Welcome to the wedding. Come on in....
Darris made these signs from some old boards he found.

The wedding was held in an old rustic style building.
Here is the wreath I made from strips of burlap on the front door.

We brought our green entry table to use as the sign-in book table. I hung some curtain panels by twine in the doorway for a bit more dramatic and dressy look.
The crystal lamp gussies it up a bit, too.

We made this pen by wrapping a peacock feather around a Bic pen, and gluing on some vintage jewelry pieces. It is sitting in a small bottle filled with birdseed.

This basket was recycled from Shannon's wedding and used to hold the programs I made.

It looks magical with all those little lights...Of course we didn't get to enjoy them during the ceremony because the lights went out about 20 minutes before the wedding started. We began to wonder what else could go wrong.

I bought this chalkboard at Hobby Lobby for the seating cards. Now I have another chalkboard to use or let the kids play on. Y'all know how I love chalkboards.

I made the letter "W" on the mantel. Joey cut it out for me from 3 layers of foam core board, and I hot glued the moss onto it. I am proud of how it turned out. I was hoping to put it on our mantel at home since our initial is "W" too, but Shawn already has a place in mind for it at their new apartment .

The altar area: ferns, lots of candles, and the letter, "W".

candles on the fireplace...

This buffet displays photos of Shawn and Darris' sisters' and parents' weddings. Shawn laughed at our picture. We were just babies, you know. I told her she and Darris will look like this in 30 years, too. Ha. In the center, is a special bride doll made for Shawn by her late grandmother, Meemaw. She even made her hair blonde, and placed a penny in her shoe from her birth year.

Here you see one of the trees Shawn decorated with hydrangeas and crystals.

You may remember, we covered cans in burlap and pieces of vintage jewelry to use as vases.

I planted some herbs for a couple table decorations. They smell good, and look nice, too.

Somehow, this table number was blown over. It was too close to a candle, and caught on fire, and burned the tablecloth, too. Didn't cause too much damage...just another little problem.

Her dress hanging in the bride room. So simply elegant.
The flowere were so pretty.
Getting dressed. Shawn found her beautiful hairpiece from ETSY.

Spiking the hair...we did have another little mishap-when Shannon zipped up Jackson's pants, the zipper broke. I safety pinned him into the pants, problem solved.
My two beautiful girls.

one last moment between mother and daughter...
Do you like the peacock feather boutonnieres?

How is it that a beautiful bride in front of an old delapidated building can make such a pretty picture?

the bridesmaids...

Look who's jumping the highest...the groom...

Shawn and her nephews...
Shawn is crazy about her ringbearer.

The weather turned out so pretty for outdoor pictures, after all.

Mom and daughter...

Daddy and his "precious".

The music was beautiful and very meaningful. The mothers entered to the hymn, Be Thou my Vision. Shawn entered to the song , Washed in the Water of the Word, a newer song by Shane and Shane.

Joey walking his little girl down the aisle...(in the dark-as they say, the show must go on)
Despite all the little problems, she kept her smile and her composure.

Newly married , with the preacher
The happy couple...

Beautiful wedding party.

Having fun...

Do you notice Shawn is wearing her cowboy boots?
We served an assortment of cupcakes from Muddys Bakeshop. They are so delicious. Darris made the stands from old tree stumps. I love them.

We enjoyed RC Colas and Moon Pies, too.

After the wedding, we were entertained by a bluegrass band. The kids danced and had fun.

I think it is past Hudson's bedtime.

I sewed some birdseed bags and tied them with twine and ribbons. You may notice the gnome under the washstand, here. It is an inside joke started a few years ago in the Whitworth family. Every Christmas someone else gets him. Shawn and Darris have him this year, so he got to come to the wedding.

What a birdseed shower. Shawn will never get it all out of her hair.

The Moon Pie fovors were decorated by Shannon and Shawn. They piped icing "W"'s on them and tied them in little treat bags with torn fabric strips and twine.

It was such a beautiful wedding. They are on their way to Arizona as I type this. I hope they have a great trip and a wonderful life together as husband and wife.

Easter Fun

2010-04-05T15:39:00.007-05:00

How did you survive the holiday? We had a BUSY but very fun day. I had lunch at our house for all the family. We had ham, carrot souffle, deviled eggs, lima beans, rolls, and homemade pound cake with strawberries and real whipped cream. Yum. Shannon and her family, Shawn, and her fiancee, and my parents were there. After lunch , we sat out on the screened porch, since we had the most beautiful weather ever! We had an egg hunt, watched Jackson play in the sprinkler, and even flew kites, and blew bubbles. Then we drug all the food out and ate it again for supper. Boy was I tired, but it was a good tired. Shawn and Darris were the first to arrive. By the way they will be married in 19 days. Shannon and her family came soon after. We had to take lots of pictures before they could change clothes.
All my kids.My grandsons, Jackson and Hudson.

Then we ate our lunch. I just love those Honeybaked hams.
I found the girls' baskets from their childhood and as a joke the boys got tiny baskets.
And they're off for the egg hunt. I made the adults hold hands to give Jackson an advantage, but that didn't last long, because he didn't need a handicap.

He took the egg hunting very seriously...and found a lot of eggs.He wore his fireman boots since the ground was a little damp.
Shannon is such a character.

My sweet girls. Everyone was making sure all the eggs got found.

Mother and Daddy held Hudson on the porch so he wouldn't get trampled. We put money and candy in the eggs, so everyone sat down to check out their loot. I guess we have started a new tradition.

Jackson wanted to play in the sprinkler, so of course, Joey drug out the hose. Don't worry...we had hot and cold spigots installed when we built the house, so he had warm water to play in. That warm water comes in handy for car washing and washing the dogs.

Shannon blew some good bubbles.

Shawn had a huge bubble wand.

All the "kids" flew kites.
It was a great day.

2010-04-01T16:56:00.004-05:00

I hope everyone is having the beautiful weather we are having. Spring is finally here! I have put out a few of my favorite Easter decorations, and I thought I would share them with you.

First is my cute little "chocolate" bunny. I purchased this old weigh scale at my favorite antique mall a couple weeks ago(not sure if it is old or reproduction, but I don't care). It's the perfect place for seasonal items on the coffee table...a vintage Easter egg and some ABC blocks.

The entry hall table from the flea market is my seasonal display table. Here she is all decked out in her Easter finery. This tree has been used for a Valentines display, the wedding display, and will be used at Shawn's wedding with crystals dangling from it . ( 23 more days..yikes)
A basket from my childhood with hydrangeas, a bunny cake pan from Goodwill, and a basket of carrots sit underneath.
Cute carrots are from Hobby Lobby...

Nesting Easter bunnies..

A bunny candy holder from Goodwill...

An egg holder, also from Goodwill...

Cute little cup and saucer from Tuesday Morning and a vintage hankie...

Moss covered carrot, Spring plate (Goodwill),silver vase (yes, Goodwill), and bunny candlesticks(Goodwill again)...

My mantel...simple wreaths from Kroger and a cute bunny (yes, Goodwill again-are you sensing a trend?))...

The buffet in the breakfast room with my Southern Living at Home rooster. I wrote on it with Chalkboard Paint. He is risen...He is risen indeed!

And finally, my chalkboard door with an Easter message.Have a blessed Easter with your families.

2010-03-28T06:44:00.008-05:00

With 28 days to go, I should have been doing projects for the wedding. But what did I do instead? .....We went to John Deere Day , of course. We decided that with wedding planning and our usual chores, life had just about beaten us down, so we needed a break, and we took it. What fun we had. We met Shannon and her family at our local John Deere dealership for an exciting day. Jackson enjoyed playing in a feed trough filled with shovels and buckets to scoop feed corn. Hudson enjoyed kicking back in his stroller.
Joey and his little man sure love the tractors.
They even climbed up inside. That tractor was over $50,000. Wow.
Dream on...
Jackson rode a pony.
Giddy up...
Shannon and her little fellows.
Hudson just took it all in. He has the brightest eyes and such a sweet disposition.

I guess this is the closest Jackson has been to chickens and ducks.
He got to pet a goat.

Easter Bunny showed up with eggs for the kids, but Jax wasn't so sure. We enjoyed hamburgers and hot dogs for lunch.
Jackson tried milking the cow. They had a tank of water inside that cow. He had a tough time squeezing hard enough.

I believe his favorite thing of all was climbing up on all the equipment.

Mimi and Buddy do love these boys.
Shannon and Jason with their little guys.

One tired baby.

Jackson loves his Buddy so much. They are going off into the sunset to explore more tractors.

A very fun day was had by all. To top it all off , Joey and I went to eat our favorite...Mexican food last night. I think that was the best day I've had in a very long time.

Sheila

The Countdown Begins

2010-03-11T17:38:00.004-06:00

Well, the countdown has begun. We have 44 more days to get it all together.

On my chalkboard door I have featured a countdown and some photos from Shawn and Darris' engagement photo shoot. The quote says: "Happy marriages begin when we marry the ones we love, and they bloom when we love the ones we marry". So true!

We have her first shower this Sunday at my longtime friend ,Betsy's house.

Shawn is getting so excited. I believe we will have a good turnout.

The invitations have been mailed. Shannon just called, and said she received hers today.

My sister-in-law, Ginger did a beautiful job printing them.

Now to keep it all organized and tie up all those loose ends.

Ready or not..here it comes...soon.

More Wedding Plans

2010-03-10T10:16:00.004-06:00

Here is our little ringbearer. Jackson was so excited when his suit came in the mail. He seemed kind of proud to try it on. He says it is his "outfit for Aunt Shawn's wedding". We just hope he cooperates with us that night. He is 2 1/2 after all....keeping our fingers crossed , and the bribes will be in my purse.

Dapper little dude. We found some cute brown suede shoes to go with his suit.

I printed off the wedding programs and folded them and ran them through the

sewing maching with a zig-zag stitch for a decorative touch. We like things to

be unique. I don't know if you can see the stitching very well.

I sewed a banner for the drinks table using the fabrics we made into the birdseed bags. In addition to iced tea and lemonade, we are having a large wash tub full of ice and canned drinks.

So the banner will add a fun touch to that area. And we can use it again for spring decorating or picnics.
I have been collecting all kinds of old and not so appealing candlestick holders. I am painting them Heirloom White. There is a large stone fireplace with a rustic wood mantle at the site , and we will saturate it with candles on the mantle and inside the fireplace. We plan to cover a plywood letter W in moss and place on the mantle as well.

I am not getting anything productive done today, and probably won't for the next few. I went to the doctor yesterday and found out I have pneumonia and strep, so she told me to rest for the next 5 days to avoid the hospital. There is no time for hospital now. She gave me a sinus cocktail shot,antibiotics, some steroid nose spray, prednisone dose pack, and some heavy duty cough medicine, and I do feel better today--much less wheezing and I can breathe. Now if I can quit coughing.

Well, that's all for today. Hopefully I will recover quickly, because I have my daughter's wedding shower to attend this weekend. Stay well...

Sneak Peek , Wedding Planning

2010-03-08T09:00:00.004-06:00

I'll show you what has been keeping us so busy lately. We have been crafting projects for Shawn's wedding. This bucket holds little calico bags I sewed up and we filled with birdseed for throwing. She is having a relaxed, casual, rustic style wedding in April.
The building in which it will be held is quite plain and rustic, so we are going to have to gussy it up a bit. She doesn't want anything to really be matchy matchy, but to coordinate. Hence, the mismatched fabrics and ribbons, and even twine and raffia.

This little menu I printed off the computer and placed in a frame I found at the Goodwill. I painted and glazed and distressed it a bit. So shabby chic.

You read right, we are having fried chicken, mashed taters, mac and cheese, corn pudding, fried green tomatoes, pork tenderloin with crabmeat dressing, deviled eggs, green bean bundles, and banana pudding. Instead of wedding cake we are having cupcakes, ...from Muddy's Bakeshop, no less. Comfort food!

I sewed this ringbearer's pillow from burlap. (Jackson will be the ringbearer.) I embellished with some scrap pieces of lace and buttons I had found at yard sales and thrift stores. I don't throw much away. You never know when you might need it. Ha. Notice the bleached peacock feather. She is using peacock feathers, both bleached and colored ones throughout her theme.
I stripped and recovered a guest book and pen set that I purchased half price from Hobby Lobby. I also covered them with burlap and lace scraps.

Here is a little collection of the items we have made. The cake stand was made by Shawn's fiancee, Darris from an old tree stump. He is making more for the cupcake table. We also made a peacock feather pen and glitzed it up a bit with an old rhinestone earring.

We are saving jars to place tealight and votive candles in. I want to make a very large letter W for the mantel, covered in moss. Has anyone ever done this? Did you use styrofoam or thin plywood? I'll let you know how it turns out.

Well, I can't wait til the wedding. I think it will be beautiful. And yummy.

2010-03-07T07:18:00.003-06:00

I haven't posted in so long. We did have to spend time searching for a new car after the old one was totaled. This is not what I wanted to do at this time in my life. We are planning a wedding, and for those of you who have planned or are planning your own weddings, it is a lot of work and takes up ALL your free time. Maybe soon I can sneak a peek at what we've been making for my youngest daughter's wedding. Well, back to the car...

As you can see, we found one. It is a Ford Edge, and I really like it. It is too smart for me , and I haven't learned all about it yet, but I do now how to operate it, and it gets me to work.

And I think she's pretty in red. I am partial to anything in red.

I was also hit with the stomach virus 2 weeks ago and now bronchitis for the past week. Both of which I picked up from the grandsons. Oh, well, they share.

I hope I can manage to post a bit more often, but my life doesn't seem to be slowing down at all. Will it ever?

2010-02-09T16:11:00.003-06:00

It doesn't look that bad, really...

We were in an accident Saturday night on our way to a family dinner in honor of Joey's Dad, Pop, for his birthday Thankfully no one was hurt, and it was not our fault. I'm so glad Joey was driving and not me. He kept control and was able to lessen the impact to the other car. When I called 911 I didn't know where exactly we were. I stood on the side of the road blubbering like a baby. We did make it to the dinner about an hour late.

It sure tore our car up , though. Joey was able to drive it home, but he had to fight it all the way. He strapped it down on his trailer and took it to the body shop Monday.

It got the front bumper, back side door, and all the way to the back fender. The steering wheel and the underneath was bent up. I believe God protected my passenger door.
Psalm 121:7-8 "The Lord will keep you from all harm-He will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over you coming and going both now and forevermore."
Goodbye friend...

We haven't heard the final word from the insurance company, but the man from the body shop says it looks like it is totaled. I'm sure not ready to go out car shopping. We have more important things to do like a wedding to plan.

Baby It's Cold Outside

2010-01-31T08:03:00.004-06:00

Baby it's cold outside. Yessirree , its 20 degrees. Not as cold , I think, as they first said it would be.. but that's cold enough for me.

The birds love it. I told you yesterday we threw out some seed. I put out this little seed holder from Hobby Lobby, for them...

And today, it is a feeding frenzy out there.

Jake likes the cold, too, but it is kinda hard for him to walk on the ice.
I was hoping we could grill some steaks today. Maybe inside on the stove?
Oh, wait...what is that I see in the top right of this photo? Could it be? Why yes I believe it is...
Sunshine on my shoulder makes me happy. I am ready now for it to melt away.
I have started putting up a few Valentine's decorations. My husband said he thinks the snowmen should go, but I left them up just a few more days, since I was pretty sure we would be getting snow. I will show you more next time.

Love,

Power Failure

2010-01-30T14:47:00.004-06:00

We have a little ice storm here. We woke up about 2:00A.M. to a power outage. I was worried about Mother and Daddy getting too cold, so I got out quilts and covered everyone up. We were warm enough until we got up about 6:30. Joey hooked up the generator, so we could have heat and water. Even the cable was out, and no newspaper was delivered today.

Lucy stayed warm in front of the fireplace. I lit candles...
I prepared buckets and pitchers of water last night , in anticipation of losing power. When we moved to the country, I had no idea that you couldn't flush toilets, if you have well water, and the power goes out . Who knew? I didn't want to be caught in that predicament again.

This is my attempt at a snowman in a bowl. Too cold for me to play outside.

It's been less than freezing all day, and it is going to be in the teens tonight.

Shawn's car is covered in snow and ice. She went to help her fiancee move into his apartment. What a day to move.

It is pretty, though, don't you think? A winter wonderland.

our front yard...

Back yard...

Little man's swingset, also covered in snow.

My rosemary , covered in ice.

This is what I'm so thankful for today...the generator.

Well, power and cable just came on, after being out for 12 hours. I was beginning to have blog withdrawls. Just kidding. We threw some food out for the birds, and got out the binoculars to watch them eat. They seemed very glad to get some seeds. That was the highlight of the day. We got out a game, Aggravation, and played a round. To say we were bored is an understatement. Yes, we are spoiled to TV, internet, water, and heat.
I shouldn't have been whining, though, because we are so blessed, and compared
to those poor folks in Haiti, this is NOTHING. Just a very minor inconvenience. Well, everyone stay warm and dry. I'm ready for Spring, now. A little less white and more green would be nice.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow...

2010-01-11T17:02:00.006-06:00

It has been so cold here all week long! We have had temperatures in the single digits. I know you folks up North laugh, but we just aren't used to it down here. We have been busy putting all the Christmas decor away, and settling in for winter. I'll share a few pictures of what I have been up to recently. My little bird house and birdies are now atop an antique secretary that belongs to my parents. This little miniature painting is by Southern artist, Elsie Booker. She was written up in Southern Living Magazine, and her work was in their dream homes last year. I don't know how she can paint something so tiny.
The mantel minus some greenery and candles. A snowman is now on the hearth with a bucket of pinecones and snowflakes.

A soup tureen from the Goodwill on the dining room table with some antique Vaseline glass candlesticks. Some steamy soup sounds nice.

We bought this little side table 2 weeks ago at the flea market. A man from Missouri made it from recycled flooring that came from Illinois.

We went out and cut some branches for my "snowflake tree". You will notice an enamel bowl filled with play "snow". I bought it for my grandson, and he has had so much fun playing in his "snow". You just add water, and it forms snow.

On the buffet is cardinal in an apothecary jar, along with those famous Target bird salt and pepper shakers. Do you notice a bird theme going on? I guess I'm just wishing for Spring .

The tall painted vase belonged to my great-grandmother.

This is a picture showing the secretary. too. It was green when my parents brought it here , and I painted it black and distressed it a bit.

Even Lucy loves to snuggle under a blanket.

I found these mitten candy dishes on my last trip to Goodwill. I placed a winter scarf on the coffee table as a table runner.

A winter pillow, a sweater blanket, and some good reading. Makes me want to snuggle right in with my grandbabies.
See all the toys in the corner...yes, the house looks like a day care center. That's ok. They are only young for such a short time, and I want to enjoy them as much as I can.

I moved my bench into the breakfast room, and added a cozier runner to the table.

Wishing everyone a happy winter. Now I think I'll go get myself a cup of hot chocolate and sit by the fire. Stay warm!

2009-12-30T18:36:00.003-06:00

We got a Nikon D5000 camera from my parents for Christmas. I couldn't wait to try it out, so I went out to take some pictures of the dogs.

The first is our German Shepherd, Jake. You would think that since he is the biggest, that he would be top dog....

Nooo....the littlest one is in charge. She rules the roost. This is our red miniature pinscher, Lucy.
Rocky, is a min pin/ rat terrier mix.

Penny is a Jack Russell / rat terrier mix. A Jack Rat.

And who knows what breeds Lady is made of. She was found behind my husband's business with a litter of puppies during an ice storm. Of course we couldn't leave them out there to freeze, so she became #5. We did find good homes for her 4 puppies.

Since moving my parents in with us, we now have #6, Keely. She is their dog from the shelter. She is a sweetie, and very spoiled.

They all have their pecking order, and they get along pretty well. I constantly battle hair and paw prints on the floor and nose prints on the front door. No wonder I'm so tired.
I hope the weather warms up soon, so I can get out and about to take some pictures with my new camera. I'm like a child with a new toy.

2009-12-30T18:19:00.003-06:00

The day after Christmas we went to Joey's brother's home for his family dinner. Here I am with my hubby. I don't know if you can see my necklace. I ordered it from Joy at Cupid's charm
http://cupidscharm.blogspot.com/ I have three of her items, and she does great work.

Our food spread...Maccaroni and cheese, ravioli, lasagna, hash brown casserole, meatballs, green bean casserole, and all kinds of sweets.
This is Joey's dad, better known as Pop and his friend Miss Anne.

Getting all 7 grandkids to pose is not easy.

Opening presents was a big hit.

All the preparation and it is over in a flash.

Christmas Eve

2009-12-30T18:06:00.003-06:00

I'm a bit late posting about our Christmas get togethers. Our first was my family on Christmas Eve. This is our 4 generation picture: My parents, me, daughter, and my grandson.
Shannon and her family
Shawn, holding Hudson, and her fiancee.

Look what my parents gave us. I'm so excited. We had to unscramble the letters, and at one time it spelled "dream cars". I can't wait to pick it out and start taking pictures with it.

Jackson got a guitar. Maybe one day he will be famous, and you can say you saw it here first.

We ate ham, maccaroni and cheese, sweet potato casserole, corn pudding, rolls,brownies, and rum cake. We ate way too much!
I hope everyone had a great Christmas.

Christmas Eve Tablescape

2009-12-24T15:25:00.003-06:00

I will join in Susan's Tablescape Thursday today http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2009/12/welcome-to-70th-tablescape-thursday.html.

We are getting ready for our family Christmas dinner tonight. We added 2 leaves to the table so we can all sit together. Luckily I bought a long tablecloth on clearance last year at Marshall's. It fit perfectly.

The candles and candlesticks came from Hobby Lobby.

The plates are from Old Time Pottery. Glasses from Williams-Sonoma. Salt and pepper shakers from Wal-Mart.

I rolled the flatware in red napkins and placed them in little stockings at each place.

I picked up these pretty greens and flowers yesterday at Wal-Mart and arranged them in a festive pitcher also from Wal-Mart... Very budget friendly.

Yes, that's better. I forgot to light the candles for my photos.

I enjoyed sharing my table with you, and look forward to seeing all of yours.

May we share the light of Jesus throughout the world so others may come to know Him.

Lunch Party

2009-12-24T14:58:00.004-06:00

Merry Christmas to everyone. We had a little party yesterday. Our friend Betsy came over to exchange gifts and have lunch with us. My mother and I argue over whose friend she is. She was originally my grandmother's neighbor and good friend. She is between our ages, but we both claim her as our best friend. She has a son my oldest daughter's age, and they were friends growing up. She is such a dear person. Enjoy a few pictures from our little get together.

Notice Mother's reclining wheelchair. She still can't sit upright due to sacral fractures, so this is a lifesaver.

Shannon and her boys joined us for lunch.

As usual, Hudson slept through most of the party.

My youngest daughter, Shawn, had to work so she couldn't be a part of our party yesterday. She dressed up as an elf for work. She is a hair stylist. Love those pointed ears.

We are having our family for dinner tonight, and we are getting together with Joey's family Saturday night. We will enjoy a quiet day tomorrow. I hope everyone gets to spend some time with family and good friends.

Santa Baby

2009-12-12T07:26:00.001-06:00

Shannon has a friend, Jennifer Howell, here in Memphis, for those of you who would like to have some cute pictures of your kids. Here is her website

http://www.jenhowell.com/

She came to their house and took these great pictures.

Jackson took to her right away, which is saying a lot as you can see from their attempt at taking a picture with Santa...

Go to shannon's blog for the whole story.

http://shannonhaynes.blogspot.com/2009/12/giving-santa-second-chance.html

We decided we should take some pics ourselves. Here are our photos...

Hudson in his going home from the hospital outfit.

We literally had him hanging over the pillow on my couch, of course I was holding his feet

Sweet baby Hudson with Santa hat. Shannon Photoshopped it to make the hat red.

This is Hudson's first Christmas. He is 3 weeks old. We just love dressing him up and taking pictures. I guess over 1000 pictures of him have been taken between parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, great-grandpartnes, etc.in the last 3 weeks. Wow. Good thing for digital cameras.

Jackson is such a good big brother. Here he is "burping" Hudson.
I got this outfit and several others like it in different sizes one year on clearance after Christmas, before there was even a hint of a grandchild. I'm glad I did.

We had to bribe Jackson with a few M&M's to wear the hat.
And here is the little sleepyhead with his Elf on a Shelf.

If you are not familiar with Elf On a Shelf, read what Shannon wrote on her blog:

"Elf on the Shelf- My mom gave this to us last year for Christmas. On Thanksgiving Day, we read the book to Jackson. (The story in a nutshell...Santa sends a elf to you around Thanksgiving. The elf watches you during the day and then at night, he goes back to the North Pole and reports to Santa what went on during the day. The kids can "plead their case" to the elf but they can never touch the elf, his magic will go away. Everyday, he appears in a new spot to "watch". On Christmas Eve, kids say goodye to their elf and when Santa comes that night, he takes the little elf with him.)"

Well, as you can see, we don't always follow directions, because Jackson is touching him. But every morning he looks to see where the elf is hiding. It has been a lot of fun for him, and I hope for years to come. Don't you just love tradition?

Thank you for stopping by to see my little cutie pies.
Here are my 2 daughters, Shawn and Shannon with Shannon's boys, Hudson, and Jackson

It's going to be such a fun Christmas.