Feels Like Spring......

.....and I feel like this!

I am really trying to get in the mood. The weather here was gorgeous today, but I am just give out! After not sleeping well the night my sweet daughter was in the ER, it is all catching up with me, not to mention, I have been subbing almost every day. I said I would not commit the two days I have free this week, and I have already committed to one of those days.

In other news, I was pretty excited about something here called Peaches to Beaches. It is supposed to be a small version of the "Worlds Longest Yard Sale". Well I hit one small section and it was pretty disappointing. I told my husband, I have never seen so much over-priced junk in all my life. I did however have a few finds that I felt were a bargain....

My first purchase. These funky(you might say ugly) Yellow Box Suede Maryjane type shoes. Brand new with a price sticker of $37 on the box for $10. I know not a major bargain, but I am a real shoe person, and this brand shoe around here rarely goes on sale. Not to mention they have a little bit of heel and they are comfortable.

These note cards from the same person for $1 a pack. I thought of stamping something in the block on the front, initial, word, etc. They had a sticker of $10. I had to think about $1 much less $10!

A couple of cute fabric remnants.

The bargain of the day was this little glass cover for 25 cents.

Thanks again for all of the prayers for my daughter. She is doing much better, but still experiencing being sick at her stomach without warning. She will be seeing the Dr tomorrow. She seems to be doing much better at handling stress, which is most likely what has triggered this. Please pray if it is God's will that her stomach will return to normal mode soon. She is most grateful for all of your prayers. Have a blessed week! Jackie

Another Update

Thank you so much for all of the prayers. My daughter finally got seen in the ER last night around 4:45 and the strange thing is that I woke up at that exact time and prayed. I did not here from them until around 6:30 this AM. The good news is that the inflammation seems to be confined to the lower part of the colon and there was no indication of infection. They have started her on some Meds(no steroids this time) and we are praising God for that! Her hemoglobin was also the highest that it has been in about 9 years, which is an absolute miracle of God. The highest it has been in that period of time was around 8.5 right after iron infusions. Going to the ER has enabled her to be able to see the new GI Dr where she lives now much sooner than anticipated. She will be having a follow up next Wed. I ask that you pray that she respond well to this medication and quickly. She is tired and weak, but doing well, and was so excited about the hemoglobin results. You see this is the best news we have ever received since she has had this disease, so she has had great progress and we are so thankful.

God is good all the time, and again I just want to say I am blessed beyond all I could think or ask. We have had several curves thrown at us this week, and God just keeps showing his faithfulness to us. Thanks again girls! Jackie

UPDATE

Still don't know a lot Ansley's husband said they saw a DR about 4:45 this AM and they are thinking she is having a flare up. They are getting ready to do a CAT scan and we will know more later today. I appreciate all of your prayers and she does too! Please continue to pray, and I will keep you posted. Jackie

Emergency Prayer Request !

Remember this beautiful bride that I was telling you about in January(along w/ handsome husband)? Well what I haven't shared is that she has been diagnosed with a disease called Ulcerative Colitis. She has had this, and has had some terrible bouts with the disease since she was a senior in high school. Well, we have been praising God because she has been symptom free for over a year and a half. She should be arriving at the hospital in Gainesville, FL about right now, and is having what seems to be another flare up. The disease affects the colon and can make the person extremely sick, bleeding, not able to eat etc. She thought possibly she had the stomach virus, but it is clear that is most likely not the case. She is hoping to see one of the doctors that is top in this area of gastroenterology. Please pray for wisdom for them and the doctors, and this Mama that is waiting to hear from her. She wants me to wait until they have more info before I head her way. I know they would covet your prayers, and so do I. I know God is sovereign over all and we are trusting him. Jackie

Tuesdays Treasure Hunting

Do you just yard sale, thrift store shop, look for the sale rack, or do you treasure hunt? I am fortunate that my husband likes a good yard sale as much as I do and doesn't mind going with me. It is that time of year again, but I take a little different perspective. I am looking for what I consider a treasure when I go. Now my treasure may not be the same as yours, but that is the fun of it. Some days we find a treasure, and some days we don't. Here are a few of my latest treasures.

Punch cups, clear glass plates, and a glass punch ladle. The punch cups I got at the GW for .29 each. They were regular .59 ea and I said I would buy if they were still there when the yellow tags went half- price and they were. There were 11 cups, but this is to add to my collection of cups. What made me jump on it was when I saw these cups with the matching punch bowl at an antique shop for $200.00! I love using glass plates and cups for parties and showers, much more so than paper.

The antique store said the designs was "feathers"

I love the glass ladle, much better than my plastic one. Can't wait for the opportunity to use them.

Well gotta run for now. Just got a call to sub this afternoon. Let me hear about your treasures.

Jackie

Monday Menus

Last weeks meal planning worked out great! I am glad to be back on track with meal planning . Consistency sure helps me, so here are this weeks menus:

Monday: Chicken Delight, Salad, Bread

Tuesday: Soft Tacos, Chips w/salsa

Wednesday: Potato Soup, Salad

Thursday: Homemade Pizza

Friday: Chicken Dumplings, Green Beans, Pear salad

Here is my recipe for Chicken Delight

3 Cups Cooked Chicken

1 Can Cream Celery Soup

Med. Jar Chopped Pimento (Optional)

Med. Chopped Onion

Uncle Bens Long Grain rice( without season. pack) I will be sub. regular long grain rice.

1 Can French Green Beans(drained)

1 Cup Mayo

1 Can sliced water chestnuts(chopped)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix all together and bake 350 for 25 minutes.

Hope you enjoy! Jackie

Life

WhAt to dO wHeN LIFE DiSSaPpOinTS..................................

Look to the ONE who will Never Dissappoint!

"The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him , and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him." Psalm 28:7

Words for Wednesday

"Planting Seeds inevitably changes my feelings about rain."

Luci Shaw

Monday Menus

It has been a hectic few weeks, but I am hoping to be back in the swing of things this week, and that includes cooking. So here are my menus for the week.

Monday- Chicken Pie, Jello w/ fruit
Tuesday- Lasagna, Salad, Bread
Wednesday- Black Bean Soup, Rice, Salad
Thursday- Grilled Pork Chops, Lima Beans, Homemade Mac & Cheese
Friday- Soft Tacos, Nacho Chips

Weekends will be whatever is leftover.
Hope you have a great week! Jackie

Over the River and Through the Woods.....

..........not to Grandma's House, but everywhere else. I was gone last week to this sweet couple's house.

We definitely started out with illusions of grandeur of all that we could accomplish. I arrived on Saturday afternoon, and immediately set out to help cook for the church Valentine Banquet. We prepared Chicken Tetrazzini for 100 people, and put together Brownie Trifles. I will include the recipe at the end of this post. Now let me tell you what we did accomplish. We unpacked and put away everything in her kitchen. No big deal you might say, but let me tell you. This child has everything anyone could want for a kitchen. She told me if she remotely thinks about purchasing anything for the kitchen, to remind her she does not need it!

They have moved in and will be closing tomorrow. There is still a lot of work to be done, but they are there. Sorry I have no additional pictures, but truly I have got to learn to use my new camera.

While there, my sweet boy was a little down, and when asked what I could do for him, he replied, "come to my student art show" when is the opening I asked? "Thursday afternoon", he replied. Now, my daughter is 3 hours from our home in one direction, and my son is 2 hours from our home in the other direction. How could I not go. He said they would be giving some awards, and he probably would not receive any, but he had high hopes for something. I left my daughters to head home Wednesday morning, arrived home Wednesday afternoon. Went to church to keep the nursery, got up Thursday AM, realized Chloe had some fleas on her, so I clipped and bathed two dogs, dumped a few things out of the car, threw a few things back in the car and headed off to my son's home and the art show.

I arrived about 10 minutes before the awards, to hear my son receive the first award of the evening, from one of the local museums, and then later to receive one of the faculty scholarships! I am still tired, but so glad I was there. One of his professors is trying to convince him to spend a semester in Italy participating in the study abroad program through his school. That is what he hopes to use this scholarship money for. I spent the evening, then returned home the next day.

Friday was my husband's only night of so we went to dinner and watched a movie and I fell asleep. See he is on night shift so we are not on the same schedule right now.

My sister's son is playing ball at the university that is located about 45 minutes from our house. I felt that I need be supportive, and this will provide an opportunity for my sister and I to see each other, much more often than we have. Sunday after church I rushed home to head there and watch an afternoon of college baseball. He is a pitcher, so it is always who knows if he will play. He did, and again, I am glad I went.

Now I forgot to add I had bronchitis, and a birthday all during this time! I came back to substitute teaching 4 days this week, and possibly visitors this weekend. Now you know why I haven't been around lately. Life has definitely been happening at this house.

Brownie Trifle Recipe

Box Duncan Hines Fudge Brownie Mix 8 Oz Cream Cheese Softened Large Container of Cool Whip Couple TBS of Powdered Sugar Large Family Pkg Instant Chocolate Pudding

*Bake brownies*Beat cream cheese until creamy, add powdered sugar and mix well, stir in half of the container of cool whip* Mix chocolate pudding as directed* Layer in a trifle dish, or can be made into individual servings with one brownie on the bottom of cup. *Next top with cream cheese mixture* Top this with chocolate pudding* Put a dollop of Cool Whip on top* We garnished with a fresh strawberry on top.

This is one dessert you can't go wrong with and easy too! We served these in Martini glasses at my daughters wedding, and there were none left. Enjoy! I have missed all of you. Have a wonderful and blessed week. Jackie

Time Out

I have had a little "Time Out" here. This was not intentional, but just how it has been. This is the time of year that we go into "outage mode". Simply put, my husband will be working 5
12 hour nights with one night off every 5 days and it rotates each week. For the next 2 months we will not have much time together at all. This is a very tiring time for him, but we are blessed and so thankful that he has a job. This means whatever I do, it is for the most part by myself.

Friday I will head out to my daughter's to help get things ready for her and her husband to finally move in. This house has been months in the remodeling stages and they have done much of the work themselves. I thought I would give you a few previews, and hopefully share some much better pictures when I get home. I didn't realize how bad the lighting is on the pictures. I assure you that the colors are not like what you are seeing. These were taken a month ago when we delivered her washer and dryer and wedding gifts that had been stored at our house. I have to say I am just a little jealous of her kitchen. Her cabinets are beautiful and the countertops have a granite look. I love it! I don't have the before pics but the transformation has been amazing! It is a work in progress, and I am excited for them to be finally moving in. of you are

I know this looks like School Bus yellow, but it is NOT!

A peek at the main bathroom.

Hopefully we will be adding a few finishing touches,

and I will have some better pictures. Better, in my

ability to take them.

Hope you are having a blessed week! Jackie

Wonderful Weekends

Have you ever had a weekend that just exceeded any expectations that you had? This was one of those weekends at our house! My boy and girl were both home and it was the four of us here together again. It has been quite some time since it was only the four of us. You will find this to be true when you become an "Empty Nester".

My son came home Friday afternoon, and much to my SURPRISE, he spilled the beans that his sister was on the way home! We went out for Mexican and had a great dinner together. Saturday came, and remember.....my Boy and I were taking our sewing class to make our Amy Butler bag, so my Girl and her Dad headed out to Lowes. We like to do things different at our house. They were gathering a few items to do some finish work at her house, and we were set to sew....
..... and sew we did for about 7 hours! We had a blast! It was my son, me, and 7 other ladies. How many Moms do you know that can say they have taken a sewing class with their son? I am one blessed Mom let me tell you! Our Girl had dinner ready when we returned. YUM! Sunday our whole family was at church. What a blessing!

Now for a look at the finished project! I was so excited about how it turned out. I am even looking forward to making another one. I forgot to take a picture of my Boy's bag, but his was great. This was a difficult project for a beginner, but he hung in there and it turned out great! Hope your weekend was as fun as mine! Jackie

Happy Anniversary!

One year ago today, this sweet couple was getting married!

I just happen to be the proud Mom and proud Mom-In-Law.

It is hard to believe, that a year has past, and this time last year, we were in full swing with wedding preparations. I thought it might be fun to share some of the wedding memories and a few pictures with all of you. See this was a wedding done on a budget, and we did most of the preparation of decorations and food ourselves, with the help of family and friends. I think I have a list of what to do, and what not to do, what worked, and what probably would have worked better. You see hind sight is always 20-20. Have a blessed week. Jackie

Message for LeAnn

This message is to say that your blog SD is being missed greatly by me. I hoped that you might be still reading. One day you were there, the next you were gone. I hope that hurtful comments by others are not keeping you away. I feel it is best to ignore those, and move on. Hurtful comments are sometimes made to make themselves feel better. Just wanted you to know you are missed! Jackie

Return and Sophisticated Tutorial

After being away for several days, I am back . Things here have been in sort of an organizing mode. Since I last posted, this is what I have been up to:
* Moving a trailer of appliances and wedding gifts to my daughter.

* Re-organizing the way we keep records of bills, receipts, etc.

Many of the tips I am using came from some of you.

* Coupon clipping and planning menus to help with more thrify grocery shopping.

If there is such a thing.

* Trying to accomplish a major organization of our entire house.

* In addition to all of this substitute teaching regularly.

* Almost forgot I started Beth Moore's new Bible study on Esther.

It's Tough Being a Woman. This one is great already!

Now for the sophisticated tutorial:

First you're going to need some of this.

A little of this.

To make this. Oops! I forgot you will need a little duct tape too.
I forgot to take a picture, but you will also need red tinsel of some kind. Mine came from Big Lots. It was 25 feet @75% off, which was .75. Wrap it around your heart shape, with a little hot glue along the way.

Then you will end up with this. They were selling similar ones at Big Lots for $11.00. Now you could use a styrofoam heart shape, but I was determined to do this cheap. My husband keeps all sorts of odds and ends, so when I told him what I was going to do, he suggested the hose and wire. He actually put that part together for me, and made a wonderful little hanger, so it would hang correctly on the front door. I spent a total of 75 cents for this one. What have you been up to lately? Jackie

More Random Things.....

Kate at My Messy Nest has tagged me to share 7 random things about myself. I am warning you in advance these are very random, so here goes.

1. I have loaded my daughter up at least 10 times to MovE her somewhere. Keep in mind she is only 26.

2. My favorite cake of all time is Coconut. I can probably thank my Great-Grandmother for this. When she made one, she bought a fresh coconut, grated in by hand and made it completely from scratch. DELICIOUS I tell you!

3. I am a CoNtrOl FrEak , who has improved a lot, but I still like to be the driver. When my husband and I travel, I am usually driving, with a few exceptions, like this weekend when we were pulling a loaded trailer of my daughters things (one of those 10 loads I was telling you about.

4. I have only owned 2 new cars in my life. One was a LemOn!! and one was great.

5. I have watched "You've Got Mail" too many times to count. I call it my ironing movie.

6. FaLL is my favorite season. I love it!! I love the changing leaves, cooler weather and pumpkins.

7. I confess to forgetting where I park at Wal-Mart too many times, then trying to look somewhat DigNiFied and InCONspIcuOUs as I search for it. I actually had a kind employee once, who must have felt sorry for me, look for it one time. If your weren't already, you are probably beginning to wonder about me. I DO sometimes.

So there you have it my 7 VerY RanDoM things about me. I am supposed to tag seven more people or less . So here are the people that I would like to hear from:

1. Christina and Victoria at As Time Goes By (sisters)
2. Runner Mom
3. Simply Dandy
4. The Handmade Housewife
5. For the Love of My Home & Life
6. The Hancock Family

Here are the guidelines for this tag:

1. Link back to the person who tagged you (me).
2. "TAG" 7 people or less if you like, and link to them on your blog.
3. Be sure to comment on the Blogs of others who were tagged.
4. Let them know they have been tagged.

Have a wonderful week, and remember I am coming up on my 100th post.
Jackie

Swap and Giveaway

I am limited on time this morning since I am headed off to substitute this afternoon. My subbing is back in full swing and will be keeping me busy. I called yesterday, and one of the schools signed me up for all of the days they had in advance through March. Wonderful, because I like knowing ahead of time as much as possible.

Emily is having a Valentine Mini Swap and tomorrow is the last day to sign up, so check her out.

Dawn is having a giveaway celebrating her one year anniversary. So don't miss this one either. Both of these ladies are so creative you will definitely want to check out their blogs, and leave a comment. They'd love to hear from you. Gotta run. Jackie

Word for Wednesday

I am trying to be a little more consistent with my posts, and also share more of what God is showing me, or often times reminding me of. For instance, what I shared on Monday was not at all what I sat down at the computer to write. Today I am sharing an attribute of God that I am so thankful for. In a world that is constantly changing, it is comforting to know that I serve a God who never changes. He is constant, regardless of the circumstances. In a changing world, what an awesome anchor to have!

"For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O Sons of Jacob, are not consumed."

Malachi 3:6

Ponder this, and have a blessed day. Jackie

Lessons

This is what I will be working on at the end of the month. We have a shop here that sells beautiful fabric, and from time to time she has sewing classes. Well, I do know how to sew some, but have never had lessons, so I thought this would be the chance for me to improve on the skills that I already have, and make this fun tote in the process. An added bonus is that my son will be taking the class with me. You heard that right, MY SON. He is an art major, and wants to learn all that he can, and sewing is a type of art. He was not so excited that making the girly tote was the only option, but for teaching purposes I explained that there can only be one project. He will probably be doing this for his sister. Now please understand that there is nothing about him that is not all man, so we figured this should be a hoot and much fun with him joining in. I am looking forward to it, and we will have pictures of our finished projects for you to see.

Jackie

Looking Ahead

"He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;

many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord."

Psalm 40:3

What are you looking forward to in 2009? What resolutions if any have you made? What expectations do you have? Where is your hope and expectation? Some years ago God had an important lesson to teach me about expectations. If my expectations are in others I will be disappointed at some point in time. See I had a particular expectation , that if I tried hard enough, and strived to do all of the right things, that the circumstance or situation would turn out like I hoped. This has been true for many relationships that I have had over the years with family and friends. This simply is not true, and will set you up for much disappointment!
I have finally started getting it after many, many times of failure in this area. The only one who will never disappoint is the Lord!

"I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, and in His word do I hope." Psalm 130:5

My prayer is that in 2009 our hope and expectation will be in HIM alone, the One"who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us" Ephesians 3:20
Have a blessed week. Jackie

A Pleasant Interuption

No pictures today. I am headed out on a little post Christmas break. I will be taking off for a couple of days to the beach! A friend of mine called with an invitation to join her at the beach for a few days. If my camera arrives before I leave, I will definitely return on Monday with some pictures. Some of you may be thinking, the beach in the winter? Well here in the south we had about 80 degrees on Christmas day. It is a little cooler now, but I will be curling up on the beach with sweats and a blanket, and a good book, and perhaps getting some blogging thoughts and projects together. I hope each and every one of you have a wonderful new year! So for now Happy New Year, and don't forget, there will be a giveaway when I return. Looking forward to that 100th post. Blessings! Jackie

A Belated Christmas Present

No pictures today, but thought I would tell you that I am getting a fantastic late present from my wonderful husband. It is a new CAMERA!! I can't wait. It is on its way to me, so hopefully I will be sharing much better photos in the future. The cleaning is continuing here with packing up Christmas decorations today, and some much needed cleaning. My sweet son the artist has agreed to help today. We will be taking a little break to visit some shops that have lots of handmade stuff. He is checking out some more ideas to incorporate in his art work. We are making the most of his last few days here before he returns to school. Have a wonderful day! Jackie

Christmas Cleaning

I am praying that each and everyone of my blogging friends had a wonderful and blessed Christmas! We did at this house, now it is time to start some of what I call my Christmas cleaning frenzy! Something about taking down the decorations, looking forward to a new year, makes me want to clean!!! Maybe I feel as if I am making a fresh start for the upcoming year.
I thought I would share with you a few goals for the year and look forward to getting inspiration from each and every one of you.

I will be coming up on my 100th post in the next week or so, so stay tuned for a giveaway. I am not sure what it will be yet, but I have a few things in mind.

I would like to share more recipes, budget decorating ideas, and hopefully be sharing a few crafts that I will be making. I know I am planning to get back to the basics, and try to keep myself a little more focused on truly important and lasting things in the upcoming year. I need to be more about doing things that have some eternal value as opposed to the temporal.

My daughter will be coming up on her first anniversary at the end of January, so I will be taking a look back, and remembering all of the fun we had preparing for a wedding on a modest budget. Stay tuned if you are in need of some ideas. I hope that each of you have a blessed and restful week after Christmas! Looking forward to hearing from all of you in 2009.
Blessings,
Jackie

Keeping It Real!!!!

This Christmas will definitely be one to remember, that I did not have it all together. I think we could safely say that this is may qualify to be the Christmas that I was least prepared!

This would be the scene in my kitchen at this very moment.....

so I can prepare these for friends.

A quick but delicious gift to give.

Remember, I won this a while back from Kate at My Messy Nest.

It has been the inspiration and instruction,so I could make these for my sweet daughter to give as gifts.

Lastly I will leave you with this recipe for the Cranberry Almond Coffee Cakes above. A classmate of my daughters mother made this for us one Christmas probably about 12 years ago, and I have been making and giving them at Christmas every year. They are simple, delicious, and relatively inexpensive to make.

Cranberry Almond Coffee Cake

1 Cup Margarine 1/2 Tsp. Almond Flavor

1 Cup Sugar 2 Cups Plain Flour

2 Eggs 3 Tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 Cup Sour Cream 1/2 Tsp. Salt

1 Can Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

1/4 Cup Sliced Almonds

*Cream margarine & sugar until fluffy *Add eggs and almond flavor*Continue beating*Sift together flour, baking powder and salt*Add to creamed mixture alternating w/sour cream *Pour batter evenly into 2 pans*Spoon cranberry sauce on top*Sprinkle w/ almonds. Bake 350 for 35 to 40 minutes.

Top with the following glaze: 1 Cup Powdered Sugar * 1/2 tsp vanilla * 2 Tbs. Milk

Drizzle over cooled coffee cakes.

It is may prayer that each of you have a blessed and wonderful Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour. I will be away until Monday. Jackie

Unexpected Break!!!!

This is how I have felt for a large part of December! Please don't misunderstand, I love the REASON that we celebrate, but expectations of myself and others tend to overwhelm me. I miss the traditions that were in place when I was younger, because those I love are no longer here. Definitely a much simpler time, but they are experiencing a continual celebration. I have learned over this past year.... I have not learned to do the Empty Nest thing very well at all, and that has to change. God has been showing me this very clearly, so I will be listening to HIM more carefully than I have in the past month. It is definitely not about me but about HIM.

The tree is finally up, but I will not reveal the actual date this finally happened. Let's just say my wonderful son, the artist helped me. After several set backs while stringing lights we finally have a Christmas tree, with some presents!

One of my favorite ornaments. A little blurry, but it depicts the wise men. My sister gave me this several years back.

Another favorite.

This is what my sewing machine looks like right now, so I had better run! Have a blessed and wonderful Christmas week. I will be back next week to hear about all of the wonderful ways you celebrated the birth of our Lord and Saviour. Blessings to you all and Merry Christmas!

Jackie

Christmas Cheer

I am finally getting with the program, Christmas that is. Yesterday and today, I have cleaned and began adding some little Christmas touches here and there. This little wreath is hanging above my kitchen sink. The pictures seem to be extremely bad today, you see I spent all my camera money at the vet. Stella is still on the mend and is slowly coming around. She is still not quite herself, and sparing you the details some things are not quite like they should be.

This is in the corner of my counter in the kitchen.

I love these acorns that I found at HL for .29 each after Thanksgiving.

Remember that 90% off day.

I stitched up these little red and green napkins to go with the red place mats on the breakfast room table.

I promise my mantel looks much better in real life!


A close up of my garland.

I added red berries, bird nests and feathers to this wispy pine garland.

I promise that mirror is not dirty, the glare just makes it look that way.

Hopefully by this evening a tree will be joining the other decorations.

Have a wonderful day!

Jackie

LOOK WHO's HOME

Stella is HOME!!!!! She is still a little under the weather, and it is probably going to take at least a week before she starts feeling normal again. Thanks again for all the well wishes for her. The Vet says she was a real trooper as much as she had to be poked and prodded on. Now we are going to try and get some Christmas decor happening at this house. I am working tomorrow and Friday, and worked today, but I plan to spend the other two days decking the halls and making some Christmas gifts. I have finally gotten around to putting all my fall decor away. A little clean up is needed and we will be getting the tree up. Just a little later than expected! Have a blessed week. Jackie

UPDATE!

Stella is still at the vet, and has been since Thursday AM. She got hold of some bone and it has hardened in her colon. They have cleared about 90% but she is still very pitiful. I have been over there trying to feed her and get her to drink. My hopes are that she will be able to come home this afternoon. I know this sounds gross and the vet has been very honest that he has had a dog to die from this. Thanks for all the well wishes . We are missing her here. Have a wonderful weekend! Jackie

One of Those Days!!!!!

You know it is going to be a tough day when.............

The dog jumps in the shower with you!

The dog is in obvious pain.

She throws up twice.............so we are on our way to the vet. Update later.

Jackie

What do you do.....

.....when the tree needs to be put up, the mantel needs to be decorated, the house needs to be cleaned, the Christmas cards need to be sent, and everything seems to be piling up around you?

Why you defrost and organize the freezer!

Of course you also see if you can get the water dispenser to start working again,

and I did!and you make a pot of soup from the ham bone and tomatoes you found in the freezer, that you feel need to be used before they get any older!

Do any of you have any moments of what seems like total insanity? Now you know I have these moments, thankfully not too terribly often. Something about the new dryer(that is not the same color of any of the other appliances in my laundry room) just seemed to do it to me today. This is definitely keeping it real. Jackie

What I Didn't Want for Christmas

We spent a wonderful Thanksgiving with our daughter and son-in-law. My son was with us also and we had a wonderful family weekend! Ours was blessed with family and friends, and I hope yours was too!

We had so many PUMPKIN desserts! Pumpkin bars, pumpkin cheesecake,a pumpkin roll, and a pumpkin caramel pie!

Now on to what I didn't want for Christmas......We returned home with lots of dirty clothes. I immediately started washing. I was checking a load in the dryer, when I detected a slight smell, and then when pushing the button to restart, NOTHING. Time for my handyman husband to step in. He checks everything with his little checking tool and everything is checking out OK. This just can't be! How can a 20 year old dryer be conking out now? We try again and it starts, so I am convinced the praying did the trick, only to open it, and have it happen again. A little further checking has led to the conclusion that the motor is truly dying. He says it will work for now, but I had better start looking. FAST! Not exactly the purchase I would like to be making, but hey it can't run forever. So there you have it.....what I didn't want for Christmas! I am still blessed and thankful! This week I hope to share about some of my Christmas preparations, and what I am checking off my list each day to insure an unstressed and blessed Christmas celebration! Have a blessed week. Jackie