Happy
Mothers'
Day!

Wishing lots of love to all of you Moms with kids to chase at home, Moms in waiting, and Moms whose nests are now empty!
******

Did you know...

...today is Military Spouse Appreciation day?
Thank all the military wives you know for their personal sacrifices AND their husband's.

Thanks to Patti from w@h for sharing this bit of trivia!

****
Steph, I am so proud of you and Ashley for your sacrifices that you make together to serve our country!

Start Date: Immediately
End Date: December 31, 2007

"This is the time of the year when the tempting foods abound and, if you are like me, you start promising yourself that you'll commit to healthier eating when the New Year arrives. Don't Wait!! That's what this challenge is all about! If you start now, you'll get a head start on the New Year and you'll feel great.

For this challenge, set one goal for yourself that you want to accomplish before January 1st. It might be to just lose 5 pounds before that day. You might want to commit to adding one extra day of exercise to your routine (if you're not exercising, how about adding 1 day?). You might want to cut out sodas till that day or add an extra 8 oz of water to your routine. Get the picture? Set a goal!!!"
******

My friend Becky, from Women @ Home, proposed this challenge, and I accept. Here are my goals:

1) Exercise 30 minutes, once or twice a week.
2) Drink at least 4 glasses of plain ole' water daily, plus other juices and liquids.
3) Do 25 sit-ups at least 3 times a week.

Current weight: ????
Last weigh-in: 139, before Thanksgiving.
Goal: 135

Who wants to join us?
Notice you can set just ONE goal, and it can be small.

home again

We had a wonderful weekend with hubby's side of the family, and on our way home today we met my brother and sister in law for lunch. I haven't checked, but I seriously doubt I am still just 4 lbs. over my goal weight. That's okay, though.

Germs were shared, and I dug out my stash of guafinasen when I got home. Thankfully it seems to be working already, and my congestion is not bothering me quite as much as it was. Nothing like a 1200 mg horse pill to dry you up.

no deep thoughts here.. i'm beat. But I am thankful for the blessing of family and safe car rides home. Please pray that Gramma and Computer Guy's flights go smoothly tomorrow and Tech Mom and Dad have a safe drive home.

Happy Thanksgiving
from our family to yours!


We're having a wonderful time with hubby's side of the family. Great Gramma even flew down to spend time with us,
so we have the whole gang here.

We have so much to be thankful for... safe travels (8+ hours for some), good conversation, relaxation, and a terrific turkey dinner with lots of sides and delectable desserts . The girls are playing well together and drawing those who are willing into their tickle-fest.

I am thankful for these wonderful people who God used to change my life forever.

I am also grateful for you, my blogging and real-life buddies who humor me by reading my ramblings and participating in conversation, no matter how simple.

May God bless you and may you know the love of the Saviour
as we enter this holiday season.

Thanksgiving Travel Preparations

It's been a while since I posted my to-do list as a tackle. Today I have to make up for the hours I've spent procrastinating earlier in the week. Will I ever learn?

Anyway, green means it has been completed, yellow means in process.

• Make gift labels and finish wrapping gifts(we're celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas with DH's family since we'll all be together.)
  
• Finish washing dirty laundry and folding/putting away Mt. Laundry
• Sweep/Mop kitchen floor
• Clean off kitchen counter.
• Empty dishwasher & reload
  
• Remove science projects from fridge
• clean bathrooms
• wash and change sheets
• Pack baby bear's clothes, diapers, etc...
• Pack casserole ingredients
• pack ingredients for peppermint bark
  

Still to do tonight:

• Pack my bags and toiletries (and make sure hubby puts them in the car.)

Thankfully dinner has already been made... I made 2 chicken pot pies last night because it's just as easy to make two as it is to make one, so we're having leftovers. I'll just throw it in the oven to heat.

If I took pictures I would be procrastinating further, so no photos today.

What
are
YOU
tackling
today?

Halloween Happenings

* On the way to the Kids Karnival at First Evan:
Bear: "Roll, roll, roll your dope."
It's a very good thing she didn't realize what she was singing. With a little coaching, her pronunciation improved and she sang the correct lyrics.

* The main area was a little overwhelming for her. The big bounce house was too noisy for her taste. She liked the bean-bag toss, and digging through fake leaves. She also liked putting swim rings around cones. But her favorite part was Toddler Town, a room where the
A/C actually worked and the kids were her size or smaller. The bounce house in the Toddler Town was smaller and quieter, too. She had fun sliding down the Little Tikes slide, and slideing blow-up animals down the slide. Tech Mom, hubby and I were glad there were chairs set up for the parents. I had to remove her costume in order to change her diaper, and by the time we got home, Bear did not want to put it back on, so no trick-or-treating for us. She did get candy at the Kids Karnival. And she had fun giving the kids that came to Tech Mom's door their treats... except when one particular boy with a fake-bloody mask leaned over so she could put the candy in. Maybe next year....

Two Memorials...

The first, a celebration of Mrs. Y's life, took place last night. It was a Memorial Service filled with love, laughter, tears, celebration and hope. The life of a woman who served her Heavenly Father and loved His people well was celebrated, Jesus' gift of eternal life for those who repent and trust in Him alone was celebrated, and the Holy Spirit's peace was present. While Mrs. Y was undoubtedly involved in her family reunion in Heaven, some of us who knew her here on earth had a little "family reunion" of our own. It was a blessing to see friends whom I hadn't seen in years... several years, almost a decade for some of them. After the Memorial Service, we fellowshipped together as Mrs. Y would have wanted.

The Second, today. Independence Day. My nation's birthday. I bought my own little cheesy T-shirt with a hint of the stars and stripes on it, and dressed Baby Bear in her red,white and blue outfit. Her Grandparents came over to see her, and she entertained them well. She displayed her own growing independence on many occasion both last night and today. We grilled out and ate inside. I am grateful for the many freedoms we have. I wish the entire globe shared the same freedom. But alas, I am a realist, and I know that such a dream is impossible until the Redeemer come to restore all things to Himself.

Happy Independence Day!

Farm Life 101

Kitty relaxes in Gramma's flowerbed

Sam fixes the roof after winds tore part of it off.

Gramma, Lori, Laura (exchange student from Germany), Baby Bear,
Hubby, Sarah & Buster

Hubby, Baby Bear & I pretend to drive the John Deere

This is the closest Baby-Bear would get to the chick

The chicks weren't very crazy about meeting strangers, either.

This calf was born just 4 days before our visit!

The lambs were a little shy.

Chatting with Great-Uncle John (Gramma's brother)

Gramma shows us that climbing over the fence is a piece of cake.. who needs a gate?

While the water trough fills for the cows, Gramma sits near the foundation of the old barn... accompanied by a friend.
No sense in tromping back through the pasture more than necessary!
I've posted more photos of our Memorial Weekend visit at Hannah Bear's Cave.

Feliz Cinco de Mayo! (Happy May 5th)

I'm not quite the history buff, but I have personally been to the fort in Puebla, MX. This is the location of the Battle of Puebla, which is commemorated by Cinco de Mayo. Cinco de Mayo is not to be confused as the Mexican 4th of July, as many of us gringos might assume. I believe that it commemorates the Mexican defeat of the French, who were attempting to take over the country. Good thing they lost, otherwise we'd have southerners trying to learn French, and God help anyone with a southern accent who is trying to do that. (Me, included.)

We made it home safely... mostly sunny skies, no overturned tractor trailers or other wrecks on the interstate, and Baby Bear only protesting mildly every so often. She even napped for about 1/3 of the drive!!!

While Hubby unloaded the car, Baby Bear went straight to her trike in the garage and asked to ride it. We walked down to the end of the street and back, and by the time we got home, Hubby was exhausted. So I took Baby Bear out front to help me plant the flowers which Tech Mom brought down from Great Gramma's farm in WI. They've been in limbo for 2 weeks, I was compelled to give them homes in our gardem ASAP. Well, Baby Bear insisted on digging in the dirt and bagged cow manure/soil stuff. Yes, I know that is gross. I don't care. She had her plastic scoop and rake, and knows that raking grass is not as much fun as digging in the real dirt. Needless to say, she got filthy. And when she became tired, she got clingy. So I interrupted Hubby's phon conversation with his brother, he stripped her down to her diaper on the front porch, and took her in for a bath. That did the trick.

I found places for the green and white hostas and seedum, and then I extended the bed at the end of the deck for the mystery flower. It's going to have a white bloom, and may be called Sweet William, or a type of dianthis, or something.. Tech Mom couldn't remember. My glads and calla lillies are at least a foot tall, and the asiatic lillies are starting to peek through. My green beans have grown a LOT in their back pot, and the tomatoes that I thought had died in the Easter freeze on that same pot are alive and growing. The newest calla lillies haven't come up yet, but that's ok. I'm hoping they will rise to the occasion and provide just the right splash of color after the others have slowed down. They will be transplanted to another pot after I buy more dirt. After touching up the mulch, I think we'll be done, other than watering and weeding, at least til fall. Oh, and except for trying to keep my veggies alive out back.

Hubby needs the laptop to catch up on bills. Good night, y'all!

Valentine's Musings

Hubby is very patient with me in my "domestically challenged" state. Every once in a while, I come through with something that breaks my pattern of helpessness. Now, you won't catch me baking much from scratch, like my brother's wife (the Chocolate Queen). At least, not often. That's not to say I never will, but for me, as most of you who have lurked around here a while know, it's an accomplishment to cook. Period. Well, a week or so ago, Tech Mom told me about a recipe someone she works with uses for Pork Roast. I think. Maybe it was roast beef. All I remembered was that it involved Garlic and Ginger. Well guess what hubby requested for his valentine dinner? Yep, a pork roast or pork chops , marinated and cooked in the crock pot. Sara Groves shared that the best advice she received from her Mom as a newlywed was not to make her husband guess what she wanted. Set him up for success. In my 7+ years of marriage, while I would love to come up with a good surprise at some point, I have learned it's better to set myself up for success than leave hubby terribly disappointed. That wise advice works both ways.

Baby bear and I went grocery shopping this morning. Publix gave us a free red carnation "just because" it's Valentine's Day. Baby bear loved smelling her carnation, and she miraculously did not ingest any of it. The stem lasted about halfway through the store, and I was only picking up a few items there. After getting what I wanted at Publix, we headed across the street to the Neighborhood Market, a mini-version of the big superstore that everyone loathes and loves simultaneously. Except for the bold minority who manage to boycott it for philosophical reasons.

I had hoped hubby's diet dew would still be on sale at NM. It wasn't. So I kicked myself for not picking it up at Publix, since their sale price was still better than NM's everyday price. But I did not go back. Baby bear charmed the ladies in the checkout at NM, just as she had at Publix, and she fell asleep by halfway home. She is still sleeping in her crib as I type.

Anyway, I thought I would blog about my experiment, as I manage to lose recipes that I write down. I used what I remembered from Tech Mom's description, combined it with what I read in my crockery cookbook and threw in a bit of my own creativity (if ginger ale can count as my own creativity)... and now it cooks. I pray it works out, because this meal is hubby's main Valentine's gift. And I bought enough so there may even be leftovers for Baby Bear's babysitters tomorrow night, when we go out for our actual date.


Ginger Garlic Apple Pork Roast
2 1/2 -3 lb. pork roast, cut in half
2 tbs. garlic-ginger seasoning stuff that was by the diced garlic at the store, spread all over meat
ground sea salt and pepper, on both sides of the meat
1/2 yellow onion
1 lb. carrots
2 c ginger ale
1 c apple juice

Put in crock pot and let it cook! I'm doing it for 6 hours on high only because I didn't get home from the store til noon, and I don't want to wait til 8 or 10 p.m. for supper.

Serve with homemade mashed potatoes and canned creamed corn. For dessert: Duncan Hines chocolate lover's brownies with chocolate chunks in it. And maybe homemade chocolate cookies with brown and white chocolate chips, if I get around to baking them (miraculously from scratch).

That, my friends, is my Valentine's Day kitchen experiment. Hope it tastes as good as it sounds to me.

XOXOX

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY,
EVERYONE!!!

May you be blessed by the thoughts and presence of your loved ones.
May the little (or furry) ones in your life give you lots of slobbery kisses today.
May you know that somewhere in the rolling countryside of Tennessee,
this "wandering" brunette is thankful for your friendship.
May the Lord bless you and keep you!