shorts thoughts on random stuff

We are finally getting a little cold snap. I think it was supposed to be around 32 this morning. A couple of days ago I was wearing shorts. Such is the way of fall and winter in Texas. I uncovered my arms this morning and noticed the chill in the house, but it wasn’t until I got up that the funny thought hit me. If I had nipples boobs, they would be pointy this morning. I was cold.

The other day I was shopping around for bras for my girl and I had a random thought. I hoped nobody asked if they could help me because I feared I would give them a minutes long diatribe about how *I* get my bras at the hospital because I’ve had a double mastectomy, thankyouverymuch. But of course, nobody actually helps in department stores these days, so I think I’m pretty safe.

The girl and I are both PMS’ing at the same time. I wonder if we should wear special tee shirts or post a flag out doors…or at least text the hubs to warn him.

Fun times…hope you have a great day! : )

a few of my favorite things

First off…a multi-use item. I don’t know if you can tell from the pic, but that is the spool from a package of blank cd’s. Nothing impressive, right?

Well, look what this little thing can do…

Tada! I know that doesn’t look so great either, but imagine being curled up in your favorite chair with that propped up nearby watching a movie or tv show. My own private screening room! : )

And now on to the world of food. I saw this recipe on Pioneer Woman the other day. Parts of it sounded good..except for the whiskey, the chicken thighs and all the fat. Oh..and turning on the oven.

So, I piddled with the recipe and cooked some boneless skinless chicken breasts in the crock pot.

Here’s what I did…I mixed about a half a bottle of ‘regular’ (non sugary) barbeque sauce with a jar of peach preserves. I chopped an onion and cooked it until soft. Then I mixed it with the sauce, the jelly and a few good shakes of worcestershire sauce. Oh..and some minced garlic. I mixed it all together, pour it over the chicken and cooked it on low in the crock pot until it was done.

The top of the chicken looked like a glaze, so I carefully took them out of the pot so I didn’t disturb the tops. The sauce was a little thin, but I still spooned it over my cut up chicken and it was delicious! It wasn’t overly bbq’y…had a nice layered flavor..sweet but some other flavor notes as well. It’s a keeper! My way, that is.

And lastly…have I mentioned lately that it’s hot? It’s been over a 100 for about a million days in a row now. The weather man said that fall is coming…but he also said it’s supposed to be hot and dry. He’s not going to win many friends with that kind of talk.

Even though I love water and drink a ton of it every day, sometimes I really long for a nice tall glass of tea. I discovered this recently and it’s a nice change of pace and very refreshing. : )

I brew it. And let it hang out for a little bit.

Then pour it over ice with sweetener already added.

Some of the ice melts so I have to add just a little bit of water to finish filling the glass. It is so bright and tasty..not strong..doesn’t taste like Koolaid (like Snapple does). Just light and yummy!

My other favorite thing is that it’s Friday! Woo hoo. Happy weekend, y’all. : )

some hot news

So I guess I’ve got this thing called a blog. Hmm..I guess I’ll have to try this out and see how it goes. Seeing as how I haven’t posted in almost a month. Do you all even remember me? LOL

Well, there really isn’t that much to tell. It’s summer and we haven’t been up to much.

Oh and it’s hot. I mean really, rilly hot.

And last week I was watching the news and the weather man said that this week was going to be the hottest yet. I’m thrilled.

In another weather cast, he said something about a cooling trend (at some point) and “cooling down” and then he said “100”. That is not even funny, my friends.

We have pretty much given up on the local water park. A friend of mine was there the other day and said the water felt like bath water. Not exactly refreshing, if you ask me.

We have gotten to know our local malls/shops/stores pretty well though. They have air conditioning. And I’m pretty sure I’m not going to have to deal with any bath water in there either.

And in some other, other news..we start school two weeks from today. Doing online school again, cuz we love it. Excited and a bit nervous to get started. Just like always.

Oh..did I mention it’s hot? 

baby, it’s cold outside

*tap tap tap*

Is this thing on?

I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve posted. Well, I guess that’s because it has! : )

Nothing much is going on here. Just the usual.

It’s cold. Not my favorite thing. I’ve just about decided that I would be in bad shape if we ever had to live in a place that got, ya know, really cold.

Don’t get me wrong, we do have cold weather. Last winter was pretty bad for us with many snow days and a record snow fall. So far this year, although it’s been very cold, we’ve only gotten a dusting at my house..although a neighboring community got several inches.

I got all giddy the other day. I was reading the weather on my iPod Touch and it called for temps close to 80 in a few days. I couldn’t believe my eyes! How could I have missed this wonderful news???… I thought, as I shivered under a blanket.

Then I realized was reading ORLANDO’s weather.

My bad.

Leaves me pining away to be at the happiest place on earth and those beautiful blue skies!

thinking cool thoughts

It’s hot. I know I’ve said that one or twenty times of late.

So today I went looking through pictures of vacations and the like to find some pictures taken in cooler weather. I thought it might make me and all my hot weather buddies feel a little better. So here goes…

These are taken out the window of the cog train as we rode up Pikes Peak.

The first pic is Boo’s cute little giraffe she got at the zoo. He seems to be enjoying the ride.

 

Snow!!!

We made it to the top….aaaand then felt light headed and couldn’t wait to ride back down. : )

It was so pretty as we rode up…and down. And nice and cool at the top. Loved seeing the snow in the middle of summer!

And then there is me…playing outside in the snow, sporting a lovely car coat, as my mother always called it. The yellow “fur” around the face really adds that classy touch, don’t you think?! I must have been just 5 or 6 when this was taken. (This is one of my slides that I took a picture of.)  The snow looks pretty deep… for Texas.

I say it’s hot, but it rained a little bit last night and right now (middle of the afternoon), it is only 90 degrees out.

And that’s not too bad… for Texas.

reading

I read…

Angie Smith at Bring the Rain advertised that it was a free download for a limited time, so I got to read it for free. It was a good thing I was reading on my Touch that glows in the dark, because I read late into one night to finish it. Loved it. Very precious story.

Made me cry in multiple places. One of which was when she knew her pregnancy was in trouble and that unless God intervened, she would not be bringing home a baby. Strangers would ask seemingly benign questions that broke her heart because to answer truthfully, she would have to tell the story. I remember times like that during Bub’s treatment. On the outside, everything looked ‘normal’ but what we were living was anything but. I so relate!

And right now I’m taking my own sweet time reading Laura Bush’s book, Spoken From the Heart. I’ve taken it to appointments and what not. I haven’t stayed up all night to read it…yet! : )  I’m still in the early section of the book that talks about her childhood. Since she grew up in a small town, it is interesting how many things I can relate to. We moved to ‘the big city’ when I was a baby, but we still regularly visited grandparents and other relatives that lived in Small Town. Many of the things she experienced as a young girl, I had a taste of growing up as well. She is a very articulate writer and it’s easy to see she is very well read.

So it’s been fun to read two such different books that I can relate to on some level.

What are you reading? 

*tap tap tap*

Is this thing on?

Remember me?

I haven’t posted much lately. It feels like I’m busy but I haven’t been up to that much either. I do know one of the things that has taken up some time is BSF. It does take time to do the homework. Sometimes the questions are ‘easy’ and other times they require a little more digging. But it’s been good. Yippee.. this week Jesus *finally* gets to raise from the dead. I’m so glad. It’s hard to stay with His walk to the cross and His time on the cross for such a long time. So this will be an especially good week of study.

And now for some little bits of random… remember the other day when I asked your opinions on hard anodized non stick cookware. Well here’s the deal.. I bought this the other day.

It’s made out of aluminum and then it’s got some fancy-dancy coating on it and I just wasn’t sure I wanted to cook with it. So it’s been sitting on my floor for a while now while I made up my mind.

Well I made it up. It hit me yesterday that I already have some really nice non stick cookware.

They’re called IRON SKILLETS. Aaaand, I can buy a universal lid for the bigger one and it will work exactly like the pricey model with the fancy coatings on it. So, that’s what I’m going to do!

I started using some new shampoo recently.. told you this was random.. Dove. And I really liked it. I really really liked it..more than Sally Field. Sorry, couldn’t resist throwing that in. Anyway, I went to buy another bottle the other day and they had changed the packaging. That drives me nuts. But I read all my buzz words… cucumber…cool moisture.. and thought we’re all good. And got it home and started using it.. and and and.. I can hardly say it.. they CHANGED IT. I guess I missed the words weightless formula. Y’all, they added conditioner. Kiss of death. It makes my hair all slippery and limp and it won’t do a dog-gone thang! So! I had a chit chat with the girl that does my hair, who knows I have a leaning toward wanting to pick up my shampoo at the Walmart instead of hoofing it over to Sally and paying an arm and a leg. She told me to try TRESemme. I went straight to the Walmart yesterday to get some and I thought I was gonna have a stroke just trying to find the right ‘formula’.. no, not color treated, not extra body, not damaged, not breakage control. I was thinking good-NESS, y’all, I just wanna wash my hair and without it leaving an oil slick. And then I found NORMAL shampoo on the bottom shelf about 4 inches off the floor. Evidently there aren’t very many people out there with normal hair. I feel special. I got home and used it and felt even more special. I’m in love again. Yay!

And speaking of fancy-dancy and hair... we had a hair rehearsal last weekend for a fancy-dancy par-tay the girl is going to on Saturday night. I am not much of a hair ‘doer’ and didn’t have a clue what to do to make her hair look special. So the girl who does my hair make a couple of suggestions and viola…

I think I did a perty good job, thankyouverymuch. And just an fyi.. no she won’t be using the orange clippy. That was just to practice.

The end.

not fun and fun

I feel like I literally have nothing to say right now.  Life is nuts. I returned my washer and dryer.  Looong story involving how strangely products are made these days.  An example…my washing machine that had a ‘normal’ cycle, a ‘casual’ cycle and a ‘delicate’ cycle.  And the only difference in the three is how long the machine agitates. NOT how hard or gently it does it.  I looked inside my machine while it was working and knew it would tear up anything truly ‘delicate’, so I send them both back.  My dryer door made such a shrill sound when I opened or closed it, I had to wear ear protection to keep from getting a headache, which I’m prone to with very loud noises. I could go on and on….! *sigh* I also wasn’t thrilled with some things that were done in the whole process.  There isn’t a point in going into it so I’ll just say…

… tomorrow I’m getting a new pair from a different store.  The lady that waited on me there was actually knowledgeable about the machines and could answer any question I had, rather than saying ummm a lot and reading the same little card above the appliance that I can read for myself.  Hoping the saga ends tomorrow.  You. Have. No. Idea. how NOT FUN this has been!

***awkward non-existent segway segue way segue***

I’m working on pix for our Disney trip. I’ve been looking forward to scrapbooking them since we took our trip. I used the blog (under the travel label) to remind myself of what we did on what day and even remembered some things I had forgotten.  I think it will be fun. I was given some pre-made pages (add your own pix) in a Disney theme that are 8 by 8. I’ve never scrapbooked on pages smaller than 12 by 12. And the photos can seem huge. So! *squeal* Somebody told me that at Sams Club you can print out wallet sized prints… and with some fancy maneuvering of the photos on the screen there in the store, you only have to print one of each pic. So you get two photos on one 3.5 by 6 piece of photo paper. There is a small piece to slice off at the bottom and they have to be cut apart, of course. But they will be very cute in my little book.  I’m hoping to find pix of some of the things I didn’t get pictures of and have those printed to fill in a couple of gaps of attractions we don’t want to forget!  I think it will be a FUN little project. 

new header... again

I loved my old header, but it was ready made.

I saw it in a few other places and that bothered me a little bit.

I went looking for something else today and found this old header I made forever ago that never saw the light of day.

It looks really cute with the background I have.

And it's custom...'cuz I made it myself... with my very limited digital scrapbooking skilz.

Ta-da!

Happy weekend everybody. And stay warm, if you're like most of us right now and in a seriously cold 'cold spell' like we are. BRRRRRR.

blogging in the new year

So it’s New Year’s Eve, and here I sit. Blogging.  I’m sure I’m not the only one, though.

Many of you have done a year in review, and honestly I really don’t want to review this year.  For the most part, it was just hard.

So I think I’ll stick to a Christmas break in review kinda deal.  We’ve really enjoyed having time off during the holiday.  We’ve had some family time and just relaxed without work and school stresses pressing in on us. And that’s been so nice.  We’ve watched movies together.  We’ve eaten together. We’ve gone shopping together.  I could go on and on. 

We’ve even watched it snow together.  I can’t say that we played in it… because we didn’t.  I kind of hate that, but I also hate the cold. I was a little surprised that hubs and Boo didn’t want to get out in it, but we HAD been “out in it” technically returning home from the resort place, and I guess after all that drama, we just weren’t up to it anymore.

But I took pictures!  Out the front door.

And out the back door. OK.. I actually didn’t open a door to take that one.. I parted the blinds with two fingers and took the pic with the other hand. It’s good to have a talent, I guess.

But I think this pic sums up the weather we’ve had of late... with or without the snow.

Just wake me when it’s over.  This pic totally cracks me up.. she’s hugging her back foot!  Yes, that’s my unmade bed.  And yes, that’s about a billion blankets. 

Winter, I am not a fan.

Happy New Year everybody. Stay safe. Stay warm! : )

not much to tell

Hi. I feel like I don’t have much to share. Life is just plugging along. And I’m not getting out much these days. It hit me last night that I haven’t put up a post in a week… probably close to some sort of record or something. Not that it matters to a hill of beans. But whatever.

I woke up yesterday morning at 4am and immediately started thinking about and praying for Stellan. I have been worried sick about him. And I waited… along with a zillion other people, for the news that came at the end of the day yesterday. His ablation went perfectly! I was so relieved.

I’m glad they got their miracle. (he is still a bit in the woods with another issue, but his heart is doing wonderfully)

That was my bright spot yesterday. So much so that I was bubbling over to talk about it when hubs got home. And even though he’s a compassionate person, he’s not drawn as deeply into ‘my internet stories’. But he humored me anyway.

And today…laundry. And more laundry. And a little Sam’s Club thrown in, just for funzies. How about you?

old lady candy

No offense to ‘old ladies’, but that is what I think every day when I chew up one of these after taking a nasty tasting vitamin. The candy! Old lady candy.

living small

Saturday we went to Ikea. This is our third… visit…hoof…trek…day trip.

I remember the first time we went there, I was just shocked at just how many different kinds of things could be under ONE roof. Granted, it was a pretty huge roof, but still! One of my favorite things to do there is go through the little house set-ups they’ve got. It shows customers how they can use Ikea stuff to make great rooms.

I love looking through the little made up rooms at all the clever ‘storage solutions’ that abound. And yet I look at my house and all those funky furnishings just don’t mesh with the things I already own. *sigh* I am just not a hip/cool chick, what can I say?

This trip got me to thinking about what it would be like to furnish an entire very small house with stuff from Ikea! I wonder what it would look like? I wonder if I would shun living large (or aspiring to) and want to live in 1000 square feet or less… and love it?

I just don’t know if I could get clever enough with storage to be able to live with less space. We live pretty small now and at times, it can get frustrating. Hmm…maybe I need to think the Ikea way. But where do you begin?

I’ve always wanted to be a ‘little purse’ girl but I never thought I could pull it off. I have friends on both sides of the spectrum… everything from carrying a small carry-on for a ‘purse’ to a bag not much bigger than a wallet! I usually fit somewhere in the middle.

But I finally took the plunge the other day and found a cute little bag with a built in wallet area since that is the biggest and heaviest thing in my purse. And so far I’m loving it.

My old purse towers over my new little tiny one! So far I like it, but we’ll see. I certainly can’t hide a bottle of water in this purse, but that’s ok.

A girl’s gotta start somewhere, right?!

just the one?

We went to a new Sunday school class yesterday.

My 'from the wall' status was in all its glory. And if I'm from the wall, my hubby is from behind it!

We don't exactly do well in strange social situations.

But I think it went ok.

It was a very small class. So there wasn't a back of the room for us to hide in. Because I asked. There was a huge table.

And we sat at the head of it. great.

But they were very friendly. And since we were the only visitors, they could ask us allll the questions from where we're from to how many children we have.

Just the one? That's the way it worked out. I didn't go into it. I hate to make people feel bad for saying something like just the one?

But sooner or later, I will tell them. I just hate to go into it right off the bat when I meet someone new. It will come up at some point in discussion in class. And that's ok.

my newest little obsession

Lookie... we have bunnies!!! I couldn't help myself... the other day I just had to go outside and try to take a picture of the bunnies in the yard. I was able to catch this one. He was skeert, though. See its little ears all flat like that. I stood really still and continued to watch him and he began to relax a little bit.

Before long, his ears perked up and he looked like he was getting more ok with me watching him... and taking his picture.
Sometimes I only see one bunny in the yard. But one day I counted three hopping around and looking adorable. We eat dinner facing the backyard and it's pretty common for one or more of us to jump up from the table and run to the window if 'the bunnies show up'. Look, a bunny!

Dang, we need to get a life, don't we?!

sh-sh-sh

This is our favorite commercial right now!



So... when you really want somebody to zip their lip, just say "sh, sh, sh... shut it!"

At least that's what it sounds like to us. : )

How many of us wives and moms have given that look at one time or another? And you can't forget the cute little quirky smile at the end either!

nerd humor

When you're married to a computer person, you begin to find different things humorous. This is one of the latest funnies at our house. Enjoy!



Have a great weekend everybody! Hoping I'll come out of this blogging slump and think of something to say soon. :-D

a few of my favorite things

This week has been quiet and somewhat mellow... compared to the past month or so. And I've pretty much just laid low. I haven't done much. One thing I've enjoyed is just being able to stay home and do things that need to be done. And along the way, I've gotten to enjoy a few of my favorite things.

One of them is my iPod. I love it. I'm not a huge ear bud fan, especially when I'm just at home alone. So I bought this little gadget to put my iPod in and I love it! It's a tiny set of speakers! No, it's not concert quality or anything like that, but for what it is, it's not bad. And I can carry it around the house and set it down near my when I cook or clean or fold clothes or whatever. Sometimes I just sit in my rocking chair and listen to music while I read a book or something. There it is on the end table by my rocking chair. And I just discovered these little buddies this week at the grocery store.

They are deeee-LISH! And not quite as awful for me as

'real' cookies. And just one is quite filling!

And this is another favorite thing. I've been singing the praises of stevia for quite a while. That little shaker thing is my own stevia. I buy it in bulk. It's incredibly sweet and it only takes a tiny

shake to sweeten a glass of tea. I used to mix it with a bit of sugar, because nothing tastes like real sugar! One teaspoon of sugar adds about 25 calories to whatever I'm drinking. And isn't quite as good as I wanted it to be. But now! They're coming out with some commercial stevia products! And I'm thrilled. But it's a trial and error process. I bought one before our Disney trip and it tasted bitter. (it also had additive and filler type things in it) Ick. If they process the stems and the leaves it can leave you with a bitter product. I just picked up Sun Crystals about a week ago and everybody's favorite store (um.. not) Walmart. And it's a mixture of sugar and stevia, but it only has 5 calories per packet! And if my memory serves me correctly, one packet is the equivalent to 2 teaspoons. Very very sweet!

To tell you just how yummy I think this product is.... I actually ordered an UNSWEET tea
at Chick-fil-a! Did you hear me??? UNSWEET tea!!! Me!!! The closest thing I
had ever gotten to that at CFA was ordering half and half...and then hitting it with a
shake of stevia. But with this product,
I was willing to go all the way! Does it taste exactly like sugar? Not exactly.
No substitute product does. But does it come close. Yes... pretty darn close!
Close enough for me to buy unsweet tea at CFA. I'd say that's close!

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you have a great weekend and can enjoy a few
of your favorite things!

I spy

Sometimes kitties are all about body language... and this little pose pretty much says.... I spy with my little eye....

A bunny rabbit!

I know the pic isn't the greatest. I was taking it through the window. If I open the door,
sometimes it scares them and they hop away. This one and sometimes one other
one are regular visitors. On Easter morning they were both
hopping around and playing together and just being bunnies
I guess. So cute! : )

nothing to fear

I have nothing to fear but fear itself....

....and spiders!

Spring has sprung, y'all.

Ick!