And then God said....

"Let there be light!"

I am SOOOO excited....my house has Christmas lights and it isn't even December yet!!! WOW!!! It is a good thing that I'm sitting down! ha, ha

Last year, I BEGGED my husband to hang lights for me.......I even found a man that loves Christmas SOOO much that he hangs lights for $40!!! Yes, $40....I still have his name and number if you need his services.....anyway, when I mentioned this to my husband, you'd think that I suggested he cut off one of his favorite body parts.....so, to have lights up and working this early in the season is short of a miracle!!!

I have also put up the tree and have most of the decorations situated around the house.....I'll finish that up tomorrow. I am also hoping to get some gifts wrapped...since most have been bought and I didn't even have to go shopping at midnight or worse, 4 a.m.!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY

I hope you are all eating to your heart's content and enjoying every moment of it.....I also hope the Aggies win...but I won't hold my breath on THAT one!

I just wanted to give you a list of what I'm thankful for this year:
1. God and the freedom to worship Him
2. A loving husband
3. A beautiful and wonderful daughter
4. A terrific family (both immediate, extended, and in-laws)
5. A great country to live in
6. Our armed forces that guard us here and across the sea
7. My health and the health of my family (we are a healthy and active bunch)
8. Employment
9. A beautiful house to live in
10. All of my wonderful and supportive friends

I pray that everyone has a wonderful day and enjoys the time with their family and friends.

Book Talk

Wow, I finished my first Danielle Steele book in decades....probably only off by a few years! It took me this long b/c it was difficult to get into and get wrapped up in the story. Why? Because it is so Danielle Steel predicatable! Yes, it is nice to read about the neat and extravagent places, blah blah, blah....but EVERY book of hers is like this, so let's have something new! Alas, this book wasn't to be the winner.



Recommend it? Only if you'd like to put your imind on hold while you read it. As you read about the main character, you want to reach in and strangle her for stupid guy decisions...and then the ending is so fairy-tale-ish....her editor should be shot; aside from the fact that you could see it coming for the majority of the book!



On to the next book...the only reason I haven't cracked the spine is because CSI (THE BEST SHOW EVER!) is on and I'm enjoying actually kicking on the couch watching television! I'll give you more details later....happy day!

Diaper Cake

I've seen them, and always said, "I could do that!" And I did. I co-hosted a baby shower this weekend for a good friend and my hubby and I made a diaper cake for the center-piece. I must say, for my first try at it, it turned out pretty darn cute!!! Now then, I'm not going into business or anything, but not bad!

Diapers, diapers, diapers

As a new parent, you know that you will change a lot of diapers, but you really don't KNOW how many diapers and then you add in the COST of the darn things......well, two years later, we are sorta potty training...but all it really consists of is sitting on the toilet, putting one square in the toilet and flushing the toilet while saying, "Bye-bye.".....so, I have talked to numerous folks and have decided to embark on a new journey! We are going cloth!! Yes, I said cloth.....they are in the wash right now and I have a special little bag to carry them to the sitter's house and a different special bag to bring them home in at night! I'm SO excited and they are actually VERY pretty, too. I bought them from my new friend Andrea Lynch and she'd be more than happy to make some for your child, too.

She also makes this WONDERFUL portable chalk board, this

opens up into this:

Our Little loves her chalk board!!!

Food for all

What can $30 buy you at the grocery store? Not much. But, if you go to Angel Food Minstries, you'd be AMAZED at what you'd get....let me show you:

What is all this*:

1.5 lb. Choice Cut Beef Roast
2 lb. Breaded Chicken
Tenders
2 lb. IQF Chicken Breast
1.5 lb. Pork Chops (4 x 6 oz.)
1 lb. 80/20 Lean Beef
Patties (4 x 4 oz.)
28 oz. Salisbury Steak Entreé
1 lb. All Meat Hot Dogs
1 lb. Carrots
1 lb. Green Beans
1 lb. Rice
24 oz. Steak-Cut Fries
32 oz. 2% Reduced Fat Shelf
Stable Milk
7.5 oz. Mac and Cheese
14 oz. Chicken Broth
7 oz. Corn Muffin Mix
Dozen Eggs

Dessert Item

*Word of note, the picture is of the food for November, but the November menu isn't posted anymore, this is the December menu....but you get the idea.

Local churches participate in the program and ANYONE can purchase items from them. This is the second month we have done this and the food isn't bad. The meat isn't Granzin's, but it is good. I don't know for sure how much we are saving...but I do know I am taking a lot less trips to HEB. I'm not a fan of hot dogs...but for one meal, we can eat them and my husband and child LOVE them...so we do it. I'm trying to be more frugal and use more stuff that is in my pantry and that means being creative with some of our meals. I highly recommend you take a look and try it out. Who doesn't need to save money?

If you know someone who is elderly, they have pre-made meals for a GREAT price!

Who's the smartest looking one in class?

She just cracks me up when she wears these. We had to knock out the lenses b/c one broke...but she still finds them very useful!

Sunday Funnies

One, Two, Three, GOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Little doesn't play with dolls very much, but on this day, she and her ballerina doll were playing on the slide:

First the ballerina climbs up,

Then slides down,

And then it's Little's turn. It is good she can share with friends!

This is why I'm late to work.....

My little diva decided to get into my jewelry and show it off.....I thought I'd never get it off of her and get us both ready for the day!!

Tasty Treats

So, in case you don't know: I LOVE to cook....do I get to do as much of it now? Nope, but I do love to cook. I'm not a fan of pre-fab, boxed stuff, but reality does set in and I do break down and buy some of it.

Well, have I found the box for YOU!!! You are gonna LOVE it.

It is made by Macaroni Grill, so I figured it had to be good and I was right!! We had the alfredo the other night, and it was almost as good as my home made alfredo sauce! Tonight was marsala (my absolute FAV!) and I literally licked the spatula clean....wouldn't want it to go to waste. This stuff ROCKS and you must try it. Besides high on the taste measurement, it is VERY easy to cook and prepare. I bought mine at HEB in the pasta area. Enjoy and happy cooking!

New Book

So I've picked a Danielle Steele book, Rogue. Not sure how I'll like it b/c I read her religiously in high school, but not sure I'm still there in my life. Regardless, it shouldn't take me too long to get through it!!!

I've been reading it for a few days and I feel like I'm just watching someone's life go by, nothing exciting...now I know this will change, but Mrs. Steele better hurry up or she's going to lose me!

Just went to Amazon.com to get the link and the limited edition of this book is available for a mere $200....so, should you have some extra jingle in your pocket, go for it!!! ha, ha

Wurst Fest

Wurstfest ended on Sunday....the salute to sausage and beer!!! We went and walked around for awhile. My mother made her this adorable dress and we had to show her off!!!!


My friend Louise's son had a cute outfit on too, and we were trying to get a picture of the two of them. This is her running after him....he didn't want any hugs from her!

Our Prize Fighter

Toys....you have to have them, right? They look innocent enough, right? Yes, until your child falls on one of them and almost rips her lip off and knocks out a tooth. Yes, she is fine. Not sure we'll make our picture appointment on Saturday, but she is fine.

She fell on a drum stick for her xylophone. She was climbing where she shouldn't have been, surprised? Not if you know my child. Just thought she fell. Picked her up, handed her to Daddy and then he looked at her, I looked at her and we are both running (in opposite directions) me to the bathroom to get a washcloth, him to the kitchen, with child, to get paper towels and ice.

She cried, and cried, I almost cried, fretted about if we should call the doctor, did anyway, got a recording, called both moms, talked to both moms....can't stitch up a lip and the bleeding had stopped and Little had asked if she could play...guess she was ok. A little tylenol and ice fixed her up.

She is all better this morning and can tell you that she has an "owie" and wants to touch it. So, that is our best bet, try to keep her from touching it and not give her salty or acidic foods. Oh, the joys of having a very active child.

Sunday Funnies

Obviously our brains are rather smarter, smarter than we give them credit for!!! Take a look at this picture, it has been my header for over 6 months and NO ONE has noticed the GLARING error.....I happened to notice it; my brain must have been paused for a moment!

This is the correct picture...go back to your elementary days......are you there? Can you find the differences? Hint: there is only one thing different!

Book Talk

So I finished reading Picoult's, Perfect Match, and I looked at my husband, after I finished it and said, "I don't think I liked that ending." He, the nonreader, looked at me and said, "You read the entire book and decided at the end that you didn't like it???" Well, it isn't that I didn't like it, it is that I didn't like the ending, two completely different things, right? The book is a great read and will tug at your heart strings. We moms, will do virtually anything for our children, especially if someone hurts our child; this is the foundation of the book. But really, how far are you willing to go? Can you take the law into your own hands, even if you know the law won't do the crime justice? You will ponder these things the entire time you are reading this book. The book has its usual turns and surprises, but the ending TOTALLY takes you by surprise!

Recommend it: by all means, yes. But just be prepared.

Next book: don't know yet. I'll get back to you!

Bedtime update.

Bedtime has improved...she still doesn't want to go, but if you give her her cup of water, her turtle and a collection of other things, including hugs & kisses, she'll cry, but stays in bed.

Now the big deal is that she is waking up between 4 - 5 and decides she wants to watch tv. At those times, I'm not even thinking of getting up out of bed.....and sometimes I can get her to go back to sleep. When it is after 6, and I am actually up and trying to get ready, I toss her in my bed, cover her up and she gets to watch Blues Clues, with her cup of mango juice and stays put (sorta, until she gets bored and wants to play in my make-up)!!!!

Halloween...yes, I know it is a week later!

Here are some Halloween pics:

Our little bunny with the ghostly decorations.

With the dog.

Her first house to visit (and last b/c the rate she went, we'd still be trick or treating!) She had to go inside, visit the baby and play with the baby's toys!!!

Our cul de sac has a party hang-out for the kids.

Can't forget about Zeus. He wasn't very excited about his costume! :-)

Oh so proud

I am proud of a few folks in my life and I wanted to share this with you:





First: My sister ran the NY Marathon!! Can you believe it? In something like 3 hours, 30 minutes!!! WOW!!! She almost didn't get the chance to go and she made the smart and correct choice and did it!! Yeah! You GO GIRL!!!!! Check out her blog and see some crazy photos!





Second: My friend Louise is going to train for the Austin 1/2 marathon in February. I am SO proud of her b/c she isn't a runner, in fact HATES it!!! She did a two mile run this weekend!! YEAH for HER!!! I'm going to start doing some runs with her and planning on running the race, too!!!





Third: My friend Rachel has her own on-line business and has some WAY cute stuff!!! You MUST go check it out. I LOVE the Just In Case Diaper! Gonna have to break down and get one! She had an idea and ran with it! Gotta LOVE IT!!!!

Get out and VOTE!!!!

If you haven't already voted, what are you waiting for??? No one is going to come and grab your hand and take you there!!! You don't have the right to complain about it unless you voiced your opinion!!!!

A funny word of note: the folks that have political signs at the polls crack me up....as if you haven't made up your mind by now? A sign might sway your vote?

A question that I'd really like an answer to: Why do we still have an electoral college? I understand why it was developed, but technology is past that.....isn't it a waste?

Happy Tuesday....let's pray for everyone voting and see what tomorrow brings.