Ginger's Junket

Monday Monday

2012-01-30T15:17:00.001-05:00

I had a wonderful weekend! Hope you did, too! I spent time with my family, loved on my sweet hubby and got my spiritual batteries recharged at church. You just cannot have a better weekend than that!

I got my new Sony Cyber-shot camera that Brian won for me at Christmas and here are some of the first pictures I took with it! It's such a cool camera and will do so much stuff. It'll take me a while to learn everything.

We celebrated Ami's Halfway-to-Seventy Birthday Saturday afternoon. She'll be 35 on Wednesday and Mama made this delicious chocolate fudgey birthday cake for her!

Daddy made this huge pan of lasagna and it was amazing! I took this picture in Gourmet Food mode on my camera. Just LOOK at it! This is magazine quality!!! :)

Gorgeous pine trees in Mama and Daddy's yard

Here's that river birch close up. I just LOVE how it sheds its bark like that! The bark is so thin and peels off so easily that you really could use it for paper to write on. I gave this tree to Daddy years ago for Father's Day or his birthday, I can't remember which. I sure want me one now!!

Sunset on Camp Road

The purtiest young'uns I know!

My niece, Jessica, and nephew, Christopher.

They are our heart. And they know it, too. :)

These cherries are so bright and vivid!!

This is the fixin's tray for our ice cream sundaes.

Mondays aren't so bad when you're at home and can sleep in. Ha! All they're telling me about my new job start date is to check my email as that's how they'll be in contact with me. I can do that.

We're planning a little road trip up to the Whistle Stop this week! I'm so excited to go and EAT THIS TIME.

All roads lead home

2012-01-26T21:01:00.000-05:00

So I took my road trip, down the road that I know the best, the one that leads to my mama and daddy.

I went down yesterday, spent the night and came home this afternoon. It did me so much good to be with them and we had so much fun!!!

They had gone to town yesterday morning and brought me home some Troy burgers for lunch. Now if you grew up anywhere within ten miles of Montezuma, you know what a Troy burger is. If not, then bless your heart. Troy's Snack Shack has been in the same spot in downtown Montezuma, Georgia for as long as I can remember, longer than I've been alive probably. Their burgers are legend where I come from. And the fries, the perfect mix of crispy and salty, are the absolute best I have ever had. There's even a Facebook group of us who have moved away from Montezuma and would kill for a Troy burger. Ha! There is none like 'em.

We visited, drank coffee, hung out in the yard and even had company yesterday evening. My friend of 30 years, Lisa, her mama, Carla, and great-nephew, Dustin, came and spent a couple of hours with us, visiting and catching up. It was really good to see them! Lisa is expecting her first baby (a little girl!) in April and I'm so excited for her, I could just bust!!

Last night for our almost-midnight snack, we had ice cream and I made this banana split. They kept adding stuff to it, Mama, the cherry, Daddy, the chocolate chips, until it looked like this. It was soooo good!!!

After sleeping late and having a big breakfast of sausage, scrambled cheese eggs and oven toast with blackberry jam this morning, we went out visiting family cemeteries. I LOVE going to visit graves!! It might sound silly but I believe those loved ones who have passed on know that we're there to see them. It makes me feel better to go and visit the ones I remember and I love the stories that Mama and Daddy tell about the ones they remember, the ones who were already gone by the time I came along. Our family is mainly in three cemeteries and what's so cool to me is that we have family from both sides buried in this one cemetery, the one at County Line Baptist Church in Ellaville. Mama's daddy is there and not ten feet away, Daddy's grandma and uncle are buried. I realized that just today! They are buried so close. Daddy told me he remembered being there, six years old, right after his grandma died and his daddy crying at her grave. That's a story I didn't know until today. The older I get, the more I crave stories about my family. I'm on a quest now to find all of my great- and great-great-grandparents. One set of great-greats is buried at County Line and one set is in Oglethorpe. Mama and I are planning a trip to Dooly County to find some more.

We found this grave today in the Oglethorpe cemetery. This is the lady I was named after! She lived in the same apartment house with Mama and Daddy when they were expecting me. She was so good to Mama that she and Daddy gave me Irene for my middle name to honor her. Miss Irene died a month and a half after I was born. She gave me a silver spoon set that I still have. I told her who I was today. :)

I couldn't believe this thing was still there! We were going home and passed the old primary school, where I went for 1st and 2nd grade. When I was 6, I was running from the main building to this one, the lunchroom and library building, and I HIT MY HEAD ON THIS METAL BOX. I still have the dent in my skull to show for it. The school is falling down now but that dang box was still there!! :)

Daddy's young river birch tree that I just thought was the coolest thing!

I love how the bark just sheds like that.

Mama and Daddy's goldfish pond with the most gorgeous natural moss growing on the fountain. I took this picture of all of the fish so I could show just how big that one in the middle is!

Just LOOK at her!!

She was so hard to take a picture of!! She kept swimming away, swishing that tail at me. I told her she was gonna end up on a plate with some hushpuppies if she didn't smile and say cheese for me. She said this was the best she was gonna do. :)

We had such a great time!! I cannot wait to get back down there!!

On the banks of Boredom Creek

2012-01-24T15:53:00.002-05:00

Day two, post-job, pre-job, however you want to look at it. I'm still no closer to getting a start date at the base and even though I know this is the procedure, not knowing is still a little unsettling. I'm ready to get to work! I told Larry last night that I hated this housewife crap and I DO. He laughed and told me it's because I've never had to do it and he's right. I know I'd never be able to do this long-term.

I've been sick with a cold so these days at home have been a blessing. I've been able to rest and get better. I cleaned blinds and washed curtains today and I dusted all my Pooh beanies who live on a shelf in our guest room. I spent the better part of two years (1999 and 2000) collecting these things and as you can see, I have a few. :) I bought every single one The Disney Store at the Macon Mall had, usually the day they came out. I was crazy. This was back when I was really bad about money and bought stuff I didn't need. I actually have more money now than I did then and I'm so much smarter now!! Less is more!! But Pooh and his friends are kinda cute, ain't they? And look at Christopher Robin peeking up to say hey!

I was sick over the weekend so I stayed home, so that means I've been at home FOUR days! Straight. Ugh. I have seen every single movie from the Love Comes Softly series twice and I've seen two of them three times. I've watched endless episodes of The Waltons and Little House On The Prairie and OMG, I even watched a Little House movie where John-Boy played Charles Ingalls. Oh, how THAT messed with my mind and even caused a nightmare. Some things are just best left alone. I've played a gazillion games of Words With Friends on Facebook and my house is spotless. I gotta get out of here. Sunday, I did venture out for a trip to the bookstore and ended up having to buy a new battery for my car. All I wanted was a book and a cup of Joe Muggs! Ugh.

I feel a road trip coming on!!

right on time...

2012-01-21T18:27:00.003-05:00

Fill in the blank Friday!

2012-01-20T23:04:00.003-05:00

The last thing I ate was a bowl of chicken noodle soup. 'Cause, waaaaaaaah, I sick.

The last song I listened to was At Last by Etta James. She passed away today from leukemia at the age of 73. At Last has been my cell ringtone for years.

Using the letters of my name (Ginger), I can spell renig, reign, ring, grin, rig, neg, ire, gin, gig, egg, reg, ern, eng, in, er...

If I had to dress in one color for the rest of my life, it would be blue. I couldn't live without jeans and blue is always pretty.

My favorite candle scent is patchouli lavender.

If you were looking in my bag right now, you would find mints, my phone, my wallet and checkbook, pens, contact lens solution, lip balm, makeup, hand sanitizer, dental floss, lotion and a rubber vampire finger puppet that sat in my windowsill at work.

When I finish my blanks, I'm going to take some cold medicine and go to bed. 'Cause, waaaaaaaah, I sick.

See y'all later

2012-01-20T21:08:00.005-05:00

Today was my last day at work. I thought it would be easier since Fridays are kinda slow and the entire staff's not there.

Nope. No easier.

I know in my heart that this job at the base is what I've been working for, what I've been studying for, keeping my GPA at 4.0 for, what I've been hanging in there for. I don't know if anyone else ever picked for the co-op took TWENTY months to get there but that's how long it took me and I believe that it's because it was God's plan and would only happen in His time. I'd been working at Lifeguard Pediatrics for a year before I started the electronics program at Middle Georgia and that job made it possible for me to go to school at night. I got off work every day at 5:00 and I was in class by 6:00 on the nights that I had class. It worked.

My coworkers supported me through it all. They kept up with all the tests, always asking me how I did and praising me for my 94's and 96's when I thought less than a 100 was unacceptable. They listened to all the crazy stories I had to tell, like the night I pulled my toenail off in class during a test and the time I wired a circuit backwards and blew up a chip. They supported me through everything even though they knew that someday, I might use my education to leave them.

In fact, it was our nurse, Lisa Prince, who first told me about the electronics program. She had a friend who went through it and got a job at Robins Air Force Base. We played Bunco one night and I talked to that friend and she urged me to do it, to jump in with both feet and give it my best shot.

So I did. Twenty-three months later, here I am, about to start my own job at Robins. It feels surreal to be here.

Yesterday, they had a party for me. A beautiful cake and lots of goodies. Today, we had more goodies. Here are a few pictures!

Dr. P's delicious brown-sugar crust brownies that she made just for me!

Lisa P. slicing up her yumm-o ham and pickle roll-ups!

Shannon made these yummy little smoky links in her crock pot!

Our resident chef, baker, knitter, coffee bean roaster and awesome little nurse, Michelle, brought homemade ricotta cheese and toast with olive oil and honey this morning for breakfast!

Michelle also made me this adorable little felted mushroom!

I just love it so much!!!

Dr. Patrenos gave me these beautiful handmade silver earrings that I just adore!

And this little feller was from Angela. Her good luck one-eyed frog.

I was so touched when she gave him to me.

I don't like goodbyes and I refused to tell them all "bye" this week. Just "see y'all later". I was with them 16 days shy of three years. A lot longer than I planned to be when I was hired. Just goes to show you what YOU know when God is working. The Lord led me to these good, decent, honest, baby-loving people for a purpose. To teach me, to free me, to befriend me, to love me. They acted as lifeguards for me at a time when I needed one. I will miss them all terribly.

I'm excited about my new job and I know I'll meet new people and experience new things but I'll take my years at Lifeguard with me and if anybody ever needs a good pediatrician, I'll tell them I know exactly where they can find two of the very best. And the staff's not half bad either.

Yes to...carrots??

2012-01-14T19:28:00.004-05:00

Y'all know I'm always looking for green, organic, natural shampoos, cleansers, makeup, cleaning supplies, everything! I just feel like the fewer chemicals we expose ourselves to daily, the healthier we'll be. I have not used bleach or Lysol or Pine-Sol in my house in over seven years. I clean my house weekly, dust, vacuum, scrub the bathrooms and mop. I use Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day for all-purpose cleaning, Bar Keeper's Friend for scrubbing toilets, I have a feather duster and do not use Pledge in any form or fashion and I usually mop with a mixture of white vinegar, warm water and mild dish soap. I like Seventh Generation a lot. I love love love my Swiffer and I use old washcloths for the pad when I mop. I'm as healthy as two horses sewn together (I cracked Larry up with that a couple of weeks ago when we were talking about my upcoming physical at the base. Ha!) and I get compliments all the time about how clean my house is and how good it always smells. The way I clean works for me.

I discovered the Yes To brand recently and I LOVE IT!! My favorite so far is the Yes To Blueberries line. I've tried the carrots lip balm and I like that a lot, too. Maybe even enough to put down my Burt's Bees?? May be.

Yes To uses organic fruits and vegetables (carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes and now blueberries) and they make everything free of parabens and petroleum and all kinds of other yucky stuff. All of their products are at least 95% natural, are packaged in recyclable packaging and they never, ever test on animals.

They also give a portion of their sales to provide grants for students to plant gardens of their own. I just LOVE that!

Everything in their line that I've tried so far has been awesome. The cleanser left my skin clean and smooth, the makeup remover wipes took it all off without stinging or burning and the lip balm calmed my chapped lips after I'd been out in the cold wind way too long today.

Oh, and everything SMELLS incredible!!! Good enough to eat. And I think we probably actually could eat it. :)

How can it be that January is half over already??

2012-01-14T17:42:00.000-05:00

So here we are, another catch up. I have been SO PREOCCUPIED this month that I've been neglecting my little blog. This week, I got a little closer to getting a start date at the base. I turned in all my employment paperwork on Monday and they scheduled my physical for Wednesday and gave me a pass so that I could on base to get that done. The ladies at the employment office had told me to get there early (like two hours!) and wanting to do what I was told, I got there waaaaaaay too early. They were kind enough to take me on back anyway and I had several vision tests before they moved me back to audio to check my hearing. Now THAT was interesting! I was put into a soundproof booth, had headphones put on my head, I was given a buzzer to hold and was told to press the buzzer one time every time I heard a tone, no matter how faint the tone was. I did okay at first but the tones were soooooo faint sometimes, I wasn't sure if I was hearing anything at all so I pressed the buzzer anyway. After a while, this recorded voice comes on and tells me basically to stop doing that, that I was pressing the thing when no tone was present. Bwah!! I was so nervous and it was so quiet in there, all I could really hear was my heartbeat pounding and I have never in my life heard it so loud and clear. So we started over and I only pressed the buzzer when I was absolutely sure I heard something and after the test, they told me that I pretty much have Superwoman hearing in my left ear. I can hear at -5 decibels! Like a dog. Ha! I talked with an Air Force doctor and she told me that I'd really have to protect my hearing out there and that they'd tell me all about that during orientation. I saw another doctor and he checked my ears and mashed on my belly and asked me some questions and I was done. Passed the whole thing with flying colors! After peeing in a cup for my drug test, I left. The whole thing took 2 1/2 hours.

The only thing I have left to do now to get my start date is to complete the CVIP (Civilian Virtual In-Processing) paperwork and I got that email yesterday. I will get those forms to them Tuesday and I think that's it!! It won't be long now. I'm ready to get to work!!

I've been working toward this for nearly two years now. I am SO excited to get started and see how the Lord is going to use me out there. He has already answered every single prayer I've prayed to Him and He just continues to bless me. It has truly been amazing. God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28) That verse is becoming a favorite of mine! :)

I've said all along that I'd like to work on the flight line. I really don't care WHERE they put me, I'll be happy anywhere, but the flight line seems to call to me for some reason.

When I got my CVIP email yesterday, it told me the organization I was going into. Guess? Yep, the flight line. :) That may not be where I actually end up but I thought that was pretty cool. I hear ya, Lord. I hear ya.

Hopefully, I'll get a firm start date this week. My last day at work is Friday, the 20th, so if I'm at home a week or so, that'll be okay. I hear that the flight line starts earrrrrrrrrly. That's gonna take some getting used to.

A cuppa (or two) and a catch up...

2012-01-08T21:05:00.000-05:00

Wow! What a week this has been!! First of all, I finally got confirmation that I was selected for the electronics co-op at Robins Air Force Base on Wednesday. I'd gotten a couple of calls the Tuesday and Wednesday of the week before at home and on my caller ID, it just said ROBINS AFB. They didn't leave a message. And didn't call my cell, which I thought was weird because I gave them both numbers. I tried to call the number back and needed to put in an extension number, which I also didn't have. They called several times, all at times when I was at work. No message, nothing. It was a little frustrating. Especially since I WAS WAITING TO HEAR!! I'd had my interview on December 14th but didn't tell anybody because I wanted to wait for something TO tell. Not very many people knew about the interview and since it was scheduled for a Wednesday afternoon when I was off work anyway, I didn't have to tell anybody at work either. The Lord sure worked that little detail out! I had been asking Him to. :)

So, anyway, I finally called the college on Thursday and that's when they told me that I was indeed on THE LIST but that they'd been instructed by the base not to tell anyone until the transcripts were in and it was official. But they congratulated me anyway. :)

Nobody knows why I kept getting these strange calls. I know, though. I believe it was God putting me out of my misery. He knew I was worried and dying to hear something so He made it happen. I got the phone calls which led me to call the school. In all things, HE gets the glory.

I got the official word this past Wednesday evening and Thursday, the confirmation email that included all the paperwork and stuff I have to fill out and get back to them. Employment forms, medical forms and my security clearance questionnaire. They're all done and ready for me to take over there tomorrow! Hopefully, I'll get my physical scheduled for this week, too, and I can get my start date. I am SO excited!!

One of the things I had to have was my birth certificate but I didn't have one and Mama and Daddy didn't have one so they went to the courthouse in Oglethorpe and got me one Friday. Two, actually, so I'd have a spare. They were so sweet to do that for me!!

We met in Byron yesterday for burgers and they gave me my birth certificates and we had a good little visit together. Ami and Brian were down here in Warner Robins and wanted to take me out to celebrate, not knowing of my plans with Mama and Daddy but we all ended up together anyway, at the Big Peach in Byron. :)

I've wanted to start collecting vintage Fire-King pieces for a while now and the Big Peach is FULL of them! No time like the present, right? I started my collection with these two coffee cups.

I just LOVE the vintage look and feel of these!

Anybody want gift ideas for me? Well, there you go. :) Cups, casseroles, plates, bowls, whatever. Any colors, any design. I love 'em all! And I'm going to USE them, not just display them. Used a cup tonight for my coffee.

In other sad news, my engagement ring broke today. Waaaaaaah! I noticed it this morning in church. It was spinning around on my finger and scratching me. It's broken right where the diamond is mounted. I'll have to get it into the jewelers this week. It's been a good one. 14 years old and other than a sprung prong that was totally my fault and a resizing that was totally my fault (it went from a 9 to a 7 1/2! Woooo hoooooo!!!), it's given me no problems.

So. That pretty much catches y'all up!

Dude. It's time for a trim...

2012-01-04T20:11:00.000-05:00

This is my basil plant that I grew from seed in my laundry room windowsill.

I finally got around to giving it a haircut today and getting the harvest into the freezer until I can use it.

I can't believe it used to look like this! :)

The happiest of new years

2012-01-01T17:55:00.002-05:00

I started this new year off right by joining the church this morning!! I've been going for a while, I love the people and I've felt the Lord tuggin' on me for about three Sundays now. The Sunday before Christmas, He 'bout pulled me right out of my shoes! So I thought New Year's Day would be the perfect time to do it. New year, new church family, all kinds of new stuff coming up!! I'm very excited to see what 2012 brings to me and Larry and our family. 2011 for me was a year of fun and laughter, sorrow and loss and just about everything else in between. It was lots of school school school and trying to balance my job and my classes, my life outside of both and it was a challenge at times. So I started praying and I started going to church regularly and you know what, the Lord worked it ALL out!! That's been the biggest and best thing that happened to me in 2011.

I started a little New Year's Day tradition of my own three years ago. Instead of cooking all the must-haves for New Year's just for me, I go over to Cracker Barrel and get a plate. I did that today and they were SO busy, I had to park over at Lowe's and walk. I've never seen them that packed. Anyway, I waited and got mine to go.

Black-eyed peas, greens, fried okra, chicken and dumplin's and cornbread.

Hush ya mouth.

And while I waited, I looked around a little in the gift shop where they had Christmas stuff 70% off!! I got a few things for next year! :)

Happy New Year to every single one of you who reads my blog. I just want you to know that even if you don't leave comments or let me know you're reading about my life and thoughts, I consider you my friend and I wish you the best year you've ever had!

December Daily -- The End!

2011-12-31T20:00:00.000-05:00

December 24th

Visiting my Maw on Christmas Eve

In this new year to come, I hope to be able to go and sit and talk to her without crying. That's what she would want. I love her so much and miss her more than I can bear sometimes.

December 25th

My handsome nephew, Christopher, who at 17 is still our baby

December 26th

My Thanksgiving cactus finally blooming!

December 27th

Christmas, packed away for another year

December 28th

My winter mantel with a bit of a woodland theme, mushrooms, gnomes and owls and of course, Dieter, the German nutcracker :)

December 29th

Smiley face in the clouds that I spotted while sitting at my desk that just confirmed to me that 2012 is going to be the best year I've had in a long time. Stay tuned...

December 30th

Fireworks tent set up in a parking lot here

I am still not used to seeing these things in Georgia!

December 31st

Welcome 2012!

I just know you're going to be amazing!!!

Yellow Submarine bathroom

2011-12-27T19:16:00.000-05:00

I've been searching the internet today for Yellow Submarine bathroom items and looky here what I found! I was just talking a hand towel and a throw rug. These people are SERIOUS!

And then there's this one:

Just wow.

'Twas the day after Christmas...

2011-12-26T19:00:00.000-05:00

Hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas!! We did, in spite of the cold pouring rain. I was still barefoot and in shorts most of the day anyway. AND I got a nap on Christmas afternoon. Life was goooooood.

Here are a few pics from our weekend!

Daddy's delicious homemade chili that we had Christmas Eve with hot dogs. It's a tradition we've started and that chili gets better and better every year! This year he put ground chicken in it, too, and that was my favorite part. It was SO good!!!!

Mama roasted pecans, too. Yum!!!

Goodies on the bar.

We had two kinds of cake, cookies, Mama's Martha Washington candy, fudge, peanut butter buckeyes, the chess bars I brought and some banana nut bread that one of my neighbors made for me. (And Maw was with us, too!) My mama does not mess around when it comes to Christmas. She makes these goodies for us every year, she cooks a huge meal and pretty much works herself to exhaustion seeing that we have everything that we could possibly want and whatever else she can dream up in that sweet head of hers. Here she is on Christmas morning making my hot chocolate:

Daddy got us these little snowman marshmallows.

SOOOO cute!!

One side of the tree full of presents.

Here's Daddy wearing his furry warm

hat that Ami and Brian gave him!

Mama, Audra and Ami

It's SO funny that they're all holding a camera!

Our baby. My handsome nephew, Christopher, who's 17 now. I asked him if he wanted to sit on my lap and track Santa on NORAD like we used to do. I'm not okay with him being 17. :)

Sweet Brian, just chillin' with the stockings.

This beloved boy WON a camera for me for Christmas!! Ami told me last week that they had a magical Santa surprise for me and I had NO IDEA what it could be. They gave me this envelope Christmas Eve with this card inside telling me about the camera and that I'll get it sometime next month! It's a Sony Cyber-shot and I am SO excited!!!

These were my presents from Larry

Bet I know what this is!! :D

Brian took this one of me when I opened my

Beatles Yellow Submarine shower curtain from Larry

and then realized what it was! :)

It is such a bright, happy and BEAUTIFUL yellow!

I absolutely love it!! I told Larry today that I want to redo the bathroom in the Yellow Submarine theme, rugs, towels and a replica of the album on the wall.

What Santa left in my stocking,

along with some Bath and Body Works shower gels,

paint brushes and flux brushes.

My swag (as Larry calls it!)

From Mama and Daddy: Poofies, Bath and Body Works shower gels in Cherry Blossom and Black Raspberry Vanilla, Philosophy Amazing Grace 3-in-1 shower gel, shampoo and bubble bath (my very favorite!!!), a voltage detector (It is SO COOL!!! It will be so helpful finding shorts in circuits! I walked around the house with it last night checking all kinds of stuff for shorts. Ha!), a lavender soy candle, a tub of flux and flux brushes for soldering, The Very Best of Dwight Yoakam CD (that is just awesome!! I listened to it today. I love it.), some paint brushes and two Wilton cake pans that are very much needed! Mine are so raggedy. Mama has made about a billion cakes in her life and she always used Wilton pans and products, they're the best money can buy. So that's what she got me.

From Ami and Brian: a beautiful set of black silky pajamas and the softest black and gray plaid scarf. And The Camera!!!

My Aunt Elizabeth gave me the book, We Bought A Zoo. I can't wait to get started on it!

Larry got me these. The Yellow Submarine shower curtain, my tambourine (yay!!!), a super nice Mercer Millenia chef's knife (with a finger guard, my baby knows me and loves me! Ha!), four olive wood spoons from Crate and Barrel and Berard (I LOVELOVELOVE wooden spoons! I don't like molded plastic anything so I do a lot of my cooking with bamboo spoons. I have never even SEEN spoons as nice as these!!), the coolest inflatable snake scarecrow to keep the critters off my strawberries and 'maters next year, a super cool Belkin Conserve Insight, which tells you how much electricity your appliances and things are using, what they're costing you and the CO2 (carbon dioxide) you're generating. I played with this thing last night and I was absolutely AMAZED at what it told me!! My Christmas lights, for example, produce 86 pounds of CO2, cost me $8.25 per day and use 99 watts of electricity. My landline telephone on the other hand, produces only 13.7 pounds of CO2, costs me $1.31 per day and only uses 1.2 watts of electricity. No wonder everybody's light bill is sky high in January!! He also got me a stuffed Angry Birds plush doll simply because he liked it. Neither of us play Angry Birds. :) The gift that made me cry was the flannel shirt. He picks out these things for me from magazines and catalogs he sees during the year, saving ads here and there for things he likes. Then at Christmas (or our anniversary and my birthday), he'll send the money to Ami and she orders the stuff for me. She always wraps everything so beautifully and she's so sweet to help him with my presents. She sends him the gift tags and he fills them out and sends them back to her. They've been doing this for so long that it's like a perfectly choreographed dance. Okay, back to the shirt. Waaaaaay back in the day, when my baby was free, he wore a lot of flannel shirts in the winter. He wanted me to have one as if it was his, big, oversized and long, 'cause he's a tall boy. He even picked out the colors, reds and blues. He also wanted it washed and soft so that I could just put it on. And that I did. I LOVE it but what I love most is his sweet, romantic little soul. He is forever thinking of ways to show me that he loves me, even though I know he adores me just as I adore him. I just don't know what else to say about that except the Lord sho' knew what He was doing when He led me to Larry. I know without a doubt that I was handpicked by God Himself to be Larry's wife. I got a little irritated today in the visitation room (as I do quite frequently. Ha!), because we had eavesdroppers. I cannot STAND that. Lord, I wanted to slap somebody the day after Christmas. The Baby Jesus was JUST BORN, for goodness' sake!! When people discover how long we've been together, we become almost like celebrities to them. They stare, watch our every move, want to get all in our business and ask me questions like, "How do you do it?". How do I do WHAT?? Love my husband? If I'd met Larry in a bookstore (which is my fantasy :)) in 1988, guess what? We would still be together today. The way we live our life is no different from any other couple and when we're having a private conversation, don't lean sideways and try to hear. K??

Anyway, hope you all had the merriest of Christmases and are looking forward to fantastic 2012!!

Cookies for Santa

2011-12-25T23:27:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve, we decorated Christmas cookies!

Mama putting her touch on a cookie wreath

Me painting an angel with yellow hair and pearls

We got Daddy in on it!

Nutter Butter Snowman I made :)

I mustache you a question...

(Mama made this one with the

green mustache! SO cute!!)

Wrappin' it up

2011-12-23T20:39:00.000-05:00

I'm packing up, bagging up, wrapping up on this Christmas Eve Eve because tomorrow will be a whirlwind for me! I'll be with Larry until 3:00, church at 5:00 and then I'll head on down to Macon County as soon as church is over. I've had such a peaceful, calm December that I won't mind one crazy day. I got all my shopping done early so I wasn't out in the crowds much, although I DID have to go out and get a new toilet seat today. The hinge finally broke after being wobbly for two weeks. Guess it got tired of me ignorin' it. Since I live so close, I was just going to run to Target and get another one. When I got there, though, I could not find a parking place. At ALL. And traffic was horrendous. Did everybody wait until the last minute?? So I went to Lowe's instead. No trouble there. I was in and out with my new beige guaranteed-to-be-wobble-free toilet seat in less than ten minutes.

These are all the presents that were under my tree. They ALL get opened at Mama and Daddy's house. :)

Here are some goodies I'm taking!

Dinner rolls and chess bars that sweet Beth Yoder made for me, reindeer food for Rudolph and the gang that a precious set of triplets made for us at work and I brought home today, some homemade cranberry sauce that I made and a gallon of my apple cider that I made Wednesday.

Close up of Beth's chess bars. There were 12 of 'em.

I put them in this gift box and one of 'em got lost during the move. :)

Maw's sweet little bird casserole dish will serve our cranberry sauce. I am really going to miss her Sunday. :( My first Christmas in 44 years that I won't tell her what Santa Claus brought. But you know what? I bet she already knows.

Here's everything ready to go!

Two huge Christmas gift bags, one jumbo IKEA bag and one Trader Joe's bag.

Gotta leave this in the mailbox!

I have to share my Christmas cards!

Well, one wall of them anyway. I get so many because my sweet husband makes sure I get one every day in December, right on up until Christmas. He sends me 26! He gathers some and makes some. Precious boy, that one.

One more of our tree.

Merry Christmas!

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-12-23T13:54:00.001-05:00

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear! Ha! No offense to Buddy, but I think the BEST way to do it is by giving with your heart and not your pocketbook.

The thing I love most about Christmas is the good will toward men feeling that happens around this time of year. Everybody is kinder and smiles come easily. They just can't DRIVE!! Ugh. :)

The Christmas season is a time for celebrating the birth of Jesus and for thanking God for His Christmas (and every day!) gift to us.

I will be spending Christmas Eve and Day at my mama and daddy's house with my sister, brother-in-law, brother, sister-in-law and nephew and anybody else who shows up! We love us some Christmas travelers. I am SO looking forward to some wrapping-paper-picture-taking-madness and then some relaxing time with my family.

My favorite thing to eat at Christmas is Mama's Martha Washington candy! It looks like this:

Hush ya mouth.

'Tis better to give or receive? I don't know anybody who'd say receive right here! Be some seffish somebody is all I know. It is absolutely better to GIVE!! I love shopping for my family and seeing their faces when they open what I found for them.

I'm dreaming of a fun-filled family Christmas! Lots of laughter, hugs and full tummies.

Merry Christmas!

Presents!

2011-12-23T13:27:00.003-05:00

My loot from the past two days!

My coworkers and friends, Lisa P and Lisa S gave me these cool gifts!

Lisa P gave me the pedicure set and spearmint foot soak. Bless her heart, she's been suffering right along with me with my foot the past couple of months.

Lisa S gave me the super cool peace sign sunglasses, these adorable garden gnome salt and pepper shakers and awesome little Beatles compact mirror.

Do these girls pay attention to me or what??

Look how cute the gnomes are on my table with Brandy's mushroom!

We have had the most amazing December at the office with our Secret Santa gifts, the endless goodies brought to us by parents and reps, our wonderful Christmas luncheon we had yesterday at Olive Garden courtesy of Dr. Niebaum, who is awesome all by himself. We just have the best time together! I'm so blessed to work with such sweet, genuinely caring people.

December Daily

2011-12-23T13:02:00.000-05:00

December 21st

My hot apple cider boiling in a pot!

December 22nd

My Snowbot, one of my Christmas gifts last year from Larry.

He connects to a USB so he likes to hang out near my Mac.

December 23rd

My future's so peaceful, oh, never mind.

Got these cool sunglasses today from my friend, Lisa.

I love 'em!!

Happy Winter Solstice!

2011-12-22T18:49:00.000-05:00

Cute, huh?? Today is the first full day of winter, the shortest day of the year. I'll go along with that last part since it's 6:30 and pitch dark already outside. BUT!! From now until spring, every day will be a little bit longer, a little bit brighter.

I hate winter. I hate cold weather. I only want snow one morning a year and then I want it melted and gone by noon. I am a sunny child. I need sunshine and bright blue skies. I tolerate winter and thank the Sweet Baby Jesus every day that He put me in Georgia.

Today, on this 22nd day of December, the Winter Solstice, it is a warm and toasty 72 degrees. We're even under a tornado watch right now.

See??

I still need to make bows and put ribbons on my presents so I'll go do that now. In my shorts and tank top and, of course, barefoot. :)

Merry Winter Solstice Rainy Tornado Day!

You wanna cry? Well, here you go. :)

2011-12-21T21:59:00.001-05:00

Gone to Ukraine on an airplane...

2011-12-21T21:28:00.000-05:00

I just got this email and my little shoebox went to Ukraine! I know NOTHING about Ukraine so I Googled it (you know that I did!) and saw that Christianity is not even a main religion over there. Judaism and Islam are the main two. I'm so excited that these children are going to hear about Jesus!

Merry Christmas, little Ukranian girl. :)

Dear Ginger Schneider,

Merry Christmas from Samaritan's Purse! Thank you for participating in Operation Christmas Child and for choosing to Follow Your Box. Your gift box(es) went to

Ukraine
For photos, stories, and other information about Operation Christmas Child in this country, click the country name above. Please remember to pray for the children who will be receiving your shoe box gift(s).

A shoe box gift is often the first step on a child's journey to faith in Jesus Christ. Learn how many boys and girls continue on the path toward Jesus through The Greatest Journey, our exciting discipleship program that teaches children to become faithful followers of Christ.

Thank you, and may God richly bless you.

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-12-21T21:08:00.000-05:00

I haven't done my WILW all month! Did you miss 'em?? :)

I'm loving that it's FOUR days till Christmas!! I just hope I made the list!

I'm loving this sweet little wooden German nutcracker that Dr. Niebaum and his family gave me for Christmas! I am seriously going to leave him out all year. I just love his little face!!!

I'm loving how wonderful my house is smelling right now after I cooked this apple cider all afternoon. Apple juice and mulling spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves). Yum!!

And I found a couple of Christmas images online that were just right up my alley. :)

December Daily

2011-12-20T19:39:00.000-05:00

December 17th

Brian's birthday. He and Ami and I have a little tradition of riding around and looking at Christmas lights after his birthday party. We ride around Lake Wildwood, where they live, and then venture out into really nice well-to-do neighborhoods to see how the rich are doing Christmas. This year, they didn't do so hot. Some of them didn't even try. Scrooges. We had a lot of fun, me wrapped up in a quilt in the backseat and Brian and Ami up front. We listened to a beautiful instrumental Christmas CD along the way. It was very nice and cozy. I look forward to this little tradition of ours all year! We spotted this Christmas countdown in somebody's yard and I took a picture of it. Not your usual Christmas light display and counterculture chick that I am, I chose this one for my December Daily shot for the day. :)

December 18th

This pretty little clay jug came ALL the way from Bethlehem to rest on my hearth. Our church said goodbye to its 14-year labor of love, Walk Through Bethlehem, this year and we had a celebration potluck supper Sunday night. There were things that were used during those fourteen years that decorated the tables where we sat and we could take something home with us as a memento if we wanted to. I got a brass candlestick and this little clay jug.

December 19th

I finally got around to putting some lights up in my bedroom. I twisted a strand of lights together with some green and silver garland and I love how it turned out!

December 20th

We had our Secret Santa Finale today at work and this is what I got! A beautiful poncho-style sweater, a long-sleeved tee in a pretty hot chocolate brown and a pair of cute peace sign marshmallow socks! My Santa this year was Cheryl, our office manager, and she really hooked me up!! I absolutely love everything.

December Daily

2011-12-17T00:45:00.000-05:00

December 14th

I took a little trip out to Lane's for some more local Christmas shopping and spent an hour rocking in the sunshine. It was 72 degrees!

December 15th

This is the best time of year to work at a doctor's office! Everybody brings you goodies! These yummy all-natural honey oatmeal raisin cookies were brought to us by our baby formula rep. He got them at The Fresh Market and they were pretty much the best crunchy, yummy oatmeal cookies I've ever had.

December 16th

See? What'd I tell ya? These Christmas cookies (from Wilson's Bakery!) were dropped off today by the OB/GYN group at the hospital. We gon' weigh 400 pounds a piece come January.

December Daily

2011-12-13T18:31:00.000-05:00

December 9th

My new Christmas cactus plant

December 10th

Gifts beneath my tree. That pink box right in front is a little tradition that Ami and I started some four or five years ago. We take turns with that little box and next Christmas, something she gets me will hide in it until Christmas morning.

December 11th

A photo I took at our The Gift of Christmas musical drama at church Sunday night. I cannot even begin to tell you how incredible it was. Music, dance, the Christmas story reenacted and a completely packed church! It was so beautifully obvious Who that party was for.

December 12th

Some pretty Christmas holly that I ~~stole~~ borrowed from my next door neighbor. He will NEVER know because, yeah, the MOON blocks the whole bush anyway. Grrrrrr. Hush, it's Christmas.

December 13th

My second Secret Santa gift today at work was this awesome metal peace sign!! I absolutely love it. It's hanging on my kitchen wall right now!

Perhaps...

2011-12-12T22:36:00.003-05:00

"perhaps i am a bear, or some hibernating animal underneath,
for the instinct to be half asleep all winter is so strong in me."
- anne morrow lindbergh

What she said. :)

"And now they say that lake is somewhere over in Georgia..."

2011-12-08T22:11:00.001-05:00

After I left Mike and Brandy today, I was starving so instead of grabbing a sandwich somewhere, I came up with this most wonderful idea to stop at the Whistle Stop in Juliette and get some fried green tomatoes and maybe a barbecue sammich (the secret's in the sauce!). It's only about 20 miles from High Falls and was on my way home. I even called Mama and told her I wish she was with me. The last time I went to the Whistle Stop, she was.

Wonderful idea, right??

Well, I get there and they're closed. They're only open for breakfast and lunch. Duh. I KNEW that!! Just wasn't thinking.

I walked around a bit and took some pictures and felt the presence of Idgie and Ruth like I always do ('cause, y'all, I swear they are there!) and then I went and grabbed a sandwich somewhere. Dang it.

An afternoon in The Nature

2011-12-08T21:22:00.001-05:00

I met some fabulous folks today. Folks I already loved before I even hugged them. I've been online friends with Mike and Brandy Nichols for four years now and we've been keeping up with each others' lives via our blogs and Facebook. Finally, the stars all lined up for us and we got to physically meet and spend the afternoon together!

We agreed several weeks ago to meet today at High Falls State Park, in Jackson. We had the best time together! I felt like I'd been around them forever and that we were old friends getting together again after a while apart. It was truly a wonderful afternoon.

The place was pretty much overrun with mushrooms!

They were all over the place, much to our delight.

We love us some 'shrooms. :)

Mike spied this heron. Can you see it?

And there were ducks!

Beautiful little Willow, telling me all about the "castle" we were in

Precious little Roan was like this ALL afternoon!

Sweetest little thing EVAH.

Here we all are, just as happy as we looked!

The carpet of leaves was a nice backdrop, don't you think?

Looks a lot like my YARD. Ha!

I'm so happy that we finally got to get together!

I just wish we lived closer.

December Daily

2011-12-08T21:03:00.001-05:00

December 7th

My Thanksgiving cactus who still ain't

real sure it's time to bloom yet

December 8th
Little Willow Nichols, my sliding buddy today

December Daily

2011-12-06T20:31:00.001-05:00

December 4th

HUGE pile of leaves at the end of my driveway.

A way of life in my neighborhood.

December 5th

My ever-reliable trusty old light-up Santa. I've had him 15 years or longer and he always lights up! He's even burning his SECOND bulb. He's awesome. Just look at him. :)

December 6th

My first Secret Santa gift at work! We do this every year, draw names and then leave little gifts for each other on all of the Tuesdays in December and then we have a big gift and reveal the week of Christmas. It is SO MUCH FUN! Today I got my favorite favorite favorite Christmas fragrance from Bath and Body Works, Twisted Peppermint, in the lotion and the most adorable little peppermint jar. I love them!!

December Daily

2011-12-03T23:14:00.001-05:00

I am participating in a project called December Daily. It began as a scrapbooking thing, where you take a picture each day in December, of something meaningful to you that tells a small (or big) story for that day in your life.

My sister is the scrapbooking queen and she does beeee-u-tiful work. Me? Not so much. So I'm just gonna put my pictures on Facebook and here on my blog as well.

Finding a moment each day during such a busy month can really help slow down the hustle-bustle and bring more joy and thankfulness to the season.

If you want to try December Daily, or just read more about it, go here: http://aliedwards.com/2011/12/december-daily-2011-hello-december-and-a-few-more-tips-to-get-you-started.html

Here are my pics through today!

December 1st

The first unit of three that we'll have done by our last microprocessor class, which is December 13th. Don't know how in the world we're gonna get done. We have THREE classes left!

December 2nd

I clean my house and do laundry on Friday nights,

usually, unless I'm really tired and then, there's this...

Nappy nap nap nap :)

My two favorite cleaning products are Mrs. Meyer's countertop spray in lemon verbena and Bar Keepers Friend. Seriously. Get you some.

December 3rd

I got this cute little guy today while I was out Christmas shopping.
He's perfectly perched in our tree.

Welcome December!

2011-12-03T22:45:00.001-05:00

I'm a little late welcoming in this beautiful, glorious month!

When I was a kid, I couldn't wait for December to get here. I would spend hours pouring over that Sears Wish Book, dog-earing pages, circling dolls and dreaming of this and that, things I just HAD to have.

Since I've become an adult and especially since I've been living in a bigger city, most of that excitement has been replaced with dread over traffic, crowds and big buckets of crazy.

I try to do my shopping early so that I can stay OUT of that, so that I can come home to my little peaceful house, shut out the world and watch Christmas movies.

This year, I've been shopping locally when I could and buying my gifts from small businesses. That has been a challenge because most of the small, privately-owned businesses here are in the seediest part of town and because a lot of them have already gone out of business. It's really sad. I usually hang out in the newer part of town, where I live, work and go to school. I was shocked to see the old part of town is, well, OLD.

I did my best but Target has gotten a few of my dollars. :) I plan to spend this month listening to Christmas music, driving around in my pajamas looking at Christmas lights, watching Christmas movies (The Homecoming at least twice!), eating yummy food, drinking eggnog and hot chocolate with whipped cream, wrapping presents, spending time with my family and RELAXING and enjoying it.

There are only 31 days in December. And three of 'em are gone already!

Small Business Saturday!

2011-11-26T17:31:00.001-05:00

I didn't want to be a part of Black and Blue Friday so I stayed home yesterday completely away from that mess and I decorated my house for Christmas. I had declared this a no-mall Christmas for me last month and pretty soon after that, I saw this commercial for Small Business Saturday that was taking place the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I was SO excited!! Right up my alley, it was!! I had already bought some things online from individuals and small businesses and I'd done a little shopping locally here in Warner Robins but to have a whole day set aside for the little man?? I was tickled pink.

I hope everybody went and bought something at a small business today. Just one thing will make such a difference.

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I can't talk much about what I bought because my family reads my blog but this one place I went to (mostly for me!) was a little hippie/new age hole in the wall (that had the AC crunk and it felt so good in there!). I found so many goodies in there!! Hand poured soy candles, handmade lavender stuffed pillows, tiny little silver rings, oh, so much stuff to get into!! I got me some patchouli oil and some candles and these things right heah...

The wrapper says it's a "relaxing chocolate chip cookie". It ain't lyin'. The cookies have 5-HTP, which is hydroxytryptophan, basically the same stuff that's in turkey that makes us all mellow and lookin' for somewhere to lay down. I highly recommend them. Ha! 100% natural and 100% legal. You can't beat that.

My Small Business Saturday was a hit! I think we should do this EVERY Saturday.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-11-25T19:18:00.001-05:00

Waking up at the butt crack of dawn to go shopping is my idea of HELL. Insanity. A total waste of sleepy time. Completely out of the question. I have never, ever wanted anything that bad. Not even $7 sheets.

If I were to go shopping today (and I made a deliberate effort to not go anywhere!), I would be on the hunt for something handmade or vintage.

Something I've been learning lately is to trust God every day, in everything. He really knows what He's doing!

The best thing I ate yesterday was um, everything? This was my plate.

The BEST thing, though, was Mama's dressing. Under the ham. :)

I cannot start my day without my little routine! Pee, brush my teeth, wash my face and moisturize, wash my hair and drink a glass of tea.

My nighttime attire consists of tank tops and pajama shorts when it's warm, long-sleeved tees and leggings when it's not.

I'm looking forward to Christmas! Duh. Four weeks!!

Happy Weekend!

More Christmas!

2011-11-25T16:08:00.001-05:00

That tiny little picture on the right

is of me and Mama my first Christmas.

My collection of Santas with a copy of

'Twas The Night Before Christmas that Ami gave me.

They go perfect together!

I had the perfect dish for our sweet little clay ornaments!

Plate all ready for Santa's cookies!

Huge Christmas ornaments I borrowed from Mama!

Who says a Christmas tree has to be pine or fir?

I say a eucalyptus makes a fine Christmas tree!

Please to ignore the satellite and the MOON next door.

Santa hangin' around on the front door.

I give you the Schneider family Christmas tree :)

2011-11-25T15:54:00.001-05:00

Flash.

No flash. :)

Most of my favorites right there in the front!

The red reindeer and bells from my childhood, a mouse in a stocking that a friend made me in 1977, Santa visiting Baby Jesus and a couple of smiling dancing dreidels that we put on our tree every Christmas to honor Larry's grandma, Grace, and her heritage.

Pretty much my favorite Christmas song...

2011-11-25T14:53:00.001-05:00

Alabama's Joseph and Mary's Boy from their first Christmas album, and in my humble but Alabama-crazed-still-after-all-these-years opinion, the BEST Christmas album anybody has EVER recorded in the history of Christmas music.

It was released in 1985 and I have owned several cassette copies and one CD that I could not find to save my soul today so I've got another one on the way from Amazon. Should be here December 1st. :)

Every song on this album is awesome but this one is my favorite.

Who's the One we need to thank?

Who's this party for?

Who's the One responsible for all this peace and joy?

Who deserves the credit for the blessings we enjoy?

The preacher said last Sunday it was Joseph and Mary's little bitty boy...

That last part courtesy of ME and not Alabama. Ha!

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours!

2011-11-24T21:52:00.001-05:00

We had a wonderful day today! We were all together and we were all stuffed! Here are a few pics of the spread!

Ami had a great idea for us to make clay Christmas ornaments after dinner! She brought all the stuff we'd need, clay, paint, cookie cutters, stamps and ribbons. I think we've got a new family tradition!

Here are the ones I made!

I'm pretty proud of my Santa!

These were some Ami made to show us how. She gave them to me and I think I'll put the ones without holes in a cute Christmasy bowl on my foyer table. The ones with holes are going on my tree!

I got some goodies today, too! Mama and Daddy gave me a couple of new ornaments for my tree and this precious little stuffed red fox. He was stuffed before we ate! Ha!

His name is Todd. :)

Ami got me this beautiful peace musical snow globe!

I LOVE it!! I'm going to leave it out all year.

We had such a great day. We ate, we made Christmas decorations and we put up Mama and Daddy's tree. Our first Thanksgiving without Maw was sad, as we knew it would be. There wasn't a moment when she wasn't a part of it, though. Ami made a sweet hope ornament in memory of her and it's hanging right in the front of Mama and Daddy's tree. Ami also shared sets of pictures of Maw with all of us and we talked about her and shared memories of our Thanksgivings with her.

I had my own Maw moment last night when I was making the crust for my sweet potatoes. I have Maw's mushroom canisters and inside them were two measuring cups that she used. I put one in my flour and one in my corn meal. I needed 1/3 cup of flour to make my crust last night and I really didn't want to get my measuring cups down from the cabinet so I was just going to scoop some out of my flour canister and eyeball it. Close enough is good enough, I thought. I went to the pantry, grabbed Maw's scoop and filled it full of flour and as I was taking it back to the counter, I looked down and saw that the scoop was 1/3 cup!! Exactly what I needed. I said, "thank you, Maw!" and I knew my sweet potatoes would turn out perfect. And they did.

I hope everybody reading this had a wonderful day with your family and friends. We have lots to be thankful for!

The finished products nom nom nom

2011-11-23T19:16:00.005-05:00

Four pounds of oven-roasted Brussels sprouts steamed in chicken broth and then roasted for 30 minutes at 400 with olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh crushed garlic.

Chase's Silver King corn from the summer, cooked in my cast iron skillet with butter, sugar, salt and pepper. It ain't long for this world. That's all I'm gonna say.

I'm really happy with how my sweet potatoes turned out! I roasted them last night in the oven then scooped the potato out of the skins today, mashed 'em with milk, eggs, butter and brown sugar. The topping is flour, brown sugar and more butter.

I can't wait for tomorrow!!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-11-23T16:06:00.002-05:00

I'm loving that tomorrow is Thanksgiving!

This guy? Not so much.

I'm loving how yummy this pumpkin roll looks! I can't take credit for making it, though. A sweet little Mennonite girl hooked us up at the office with cakes and sweet potatoes and dinner rolls. AND she said she'd come back Christmas!

I'm loving the general festiveness that's going on in my kitchen today! I AM making sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts and skillet corn to take to Mama and Daddy's tomorrow!

I've got to get busy!!

I'm loving that we finished up Digital in class last night and when we go back next Tuesday night, we'll get right into Microprocessors! Our last class for this semester is December 13th so we don't have long!

And I'm loving this video of President Obama (and his girls) pardoning the White House turkey.

Gobble Gobble!

Forever is only the beginning...

2011-11-19T23:17:00.003-05:00

Forever is FOREVAH when you're a vampire.

I was gonna wait to see Breaking Dawn until the hooplah died down. And I did wait. 18 hours. Ha! I'm pathetic.

But I'm not even ashamed that I like Twilight. I've said it here before. Openly and without shame. At 44, I love me this teenaged vampire love story.

And it's exciting to go and be a part of that chaos.

I consumed all four books in about three months' time, back when I worked at Citi and we were slow. I read them at work! So when the movies started, I got sucked into them, too.

And I'm not the only one. Breaking Dawn made $70 million yesterday, over $30 million at the midnight showing. That's pretty incredible for a bunch of kids.

Breaking Dawn was my favorite book of the four so I've been looking forward to this movie for years. Yes, even though it basically builds up to nothing much. It was my favorite. I love Renesmee's sweet little character and I really hope Stephenie Meyers writes her story as well.

The movie did not disappoint. I laughed a lot and even cried twice. I thought Kristen Stewart did an amazing job in this movie. Bella's inexperienced attempt at seduction was absolutely hilarious. As a beautiful bride, nervous newlywed and then the very pregnant Bella, who was determined to protect and have her baby, despite the fact the child was killing her, robbing her of nutrients and breaking her bones. True to the book, she looked like a corpse. Skinny and gray. It was really hard to watch.

And she seems to have gotten control over that thing she was doing with her mouth that drove me up a tree. Maybe she heard it bugged me. :) I wrote on Facebook that I take back all the snarky things I've ever said about her. She was awesome.

They all were. Jacob's imprinting on the baby was both sweet and hilarious. The wolf pack angst was great comic relief and the bed-breaking scene was one of the funniest scenes of the series.

This movie is part one of the story and breaks in just the right place. Part two will be released next November. I'll be there.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-11-18T21:00:00.002-05:00

A nervous habit I have is crossing and uncrossing my legs. Oh my GOD, I have no control. I also twirl my hair. A lot.

Something that makes me sad is knowing the first Christmas of my life without my Maw is coming up. :(

Today I am thankful for like every day, SO MANY THINGS! My healthy family, my happy husband, my warm little house, my pantry full of food, every blessing the Lord has given me and continues to give me.

My favorite room in my house is my office/guest room. I spend a lot of time in there. It's cozy and warm, has a TV and my laptop and is close to the kitchen and bathroom. :)

I can't stand a barking dog. Especially at 3:00 in the morning. Don't think I won't go out there in my 'jamas and yell at him. I've seen me do it.

If I had an extra $100 to spend on whatever I wanted I would, well, I pretty much DO. But to spend $$$ just for the sake of spending?? I wouldn't do that. I guess to answer this blank, though, I'd say extra Christmas presents for my family.

The last person I hung out with was Larry. We had chicken tenders and ranch dressing. :)

Happy Weekend!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-11-16T16:45:00.003-05:00

Today I'm loving these pumpkin spice latte cupcakes that my friend, Rachel made and gave to me! They are AMAZING!!! She's taking orders for them, pumpkin pies and pumpkin cheesecakes for Thanksgiving so if you're in the Warner Robins area and are interested, let me know and I'll hook the two of y'all up!!

Nom nom nom nommy nomm nomm

I am straight loving these homegrown green peppers and tomatoes that my friend, Sabrina, brought me today, too!! I'm so jealous that she even still has maters growing in her garden. Mine died and shriveled up months ago.

I brought them home and promptly got them into a pan! :)

Oh, and I am loving this thunderstorm we're having this afternoon! It made for a very nice nap. :)

It looks a little like snow!!! NOOOOOOOO!!!!!

The big apple

2011-11-13T19:30:00.000-05:00

I went out to Lane Southern Orchards or Lane Packing, as we call it around these parts, today to do some local early Christmas shopping and LOOK at this apple I got out there! It's a green fuji and it was enormous!! You can see how big it was next to Maw's mushroom canisters. It was as big as a grapefruit.

And absolutely delicious!

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-11-11T19:40:00.003-05:00

My favorite new blog of the moment is Freckled Nest. Leigh-Ann has beautiful photography, cute clothes and she drives an awesome 1974 Oldsmobile station wagon that she calls Bacon. Ha! She's thrifty, creative and oh so vintage. I LOVE her blog!!

Something I'm thankful for is being able to spend today with Larry. It's Veterans' Day and he's the bravest, sweetest, cutest veteran I know! Spending Veterans' Day together has become a tradition for us and while it may mean more to me than it does to him, it's very important for me to let him know how very proud I am of him for yesterday, right now and tomorrow, too.

Something that made me laugh this week (besides my silly husband!) was Tuesday night after I registered for my classes next semester, I was in the student lounge and I put a quarter in the candy vending machine to get some Mike and Ikes. The machines look like this. You know the ones. I put my quarter in and got ONE piece of candy. You 'sposed to get a handful. I got ONE MIKE. That just struck me as hilarious and I literally busted out laughing. I kept saying, "I got a Mike." like Charlie Brown and his trick-or-treating rocks. Ha!

An item that is currently on my wish list is a tambourine. :)

I'm excited about a LOT of things!! Thanksgiving, my creative Christmas shopping, meeting Brandy and Mike, Willow and Roan next month, my interview at the base no matter the outcome, our practice moving to our brand new office, just ALL kinds of things!! It's a very exciting time for me. I said "creative Christmas shopping" because that's what I'm planning to do this year. I declared this a "no-mall Christmas" last month on Facebook and got some positive feedback so I'm staging a revolution against big business this year. Sticking it to the man by helping out the little man. I LOVE that idea!! I'm not saying every single gift I buy will be from small business but yeah, the majority will be. I only have about 15 people to buy for anyway. I've already started and where there were specific things family members wanted, I was able to buy them from individuals at Etsy and eBay! I am SO excited about this. Sears and Walmart DO NOT need our business. People struggling to survive the end of the year need our business. That's why I say we will have to be creative. Put some thought into it, plan ahead. It's so easy to just run to the mall and do our Christmas shopping. That's what we always do. I'm proposing we do things differently this year. These are very different times we're living in right now. Let's help each other! Stick it to the man!!

If I were a color, I would be that beautiful blue-green color of the sea. For obvious reasons. :)

My favorite way to spend a chilly day is I ain't even gonna lie. Asleep. Under a quilt.

Happy Weekend!!

Operation Christmas Child

2011-11-10T21:29:00.006-05:00

My church is collecting shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child this Sunday and this year, I'm participating! I chose to do a shoe box for a little girl, age 5-9, and I've been buying little things here and there for her for about a month now. And having a ball doing it! I felt like Santa Claus!

Operation Christmas Child brings joy and the love of Jesus to 8.5 million needy children all over the world! I am so happy to get to be a part of it this year.

Just LOOK at all those shoe boxes!!

Here's the stuff that I put in my shoe box.

I'm enclosing a note and a couple of stamped envelopes and cards in case she wants to write me back. If she does, you'll read about it here! I really hope she does.

I want a tambourine myself for Christmas (hint, hint) so a toy tambourine was the first thing I got, along with a jump rope and a pink bouncy ball. Then I added pencils, crayons, a coloring book, some toothpaste, a pink toothbrush, soap and wash cloths, Tinkerbell sunglasses, barrettes, a hairbrush, bracelets, a baby doll and a stuffed butterfly. It almost didn't all fit!

You can register your box online and track it until it's delivered!

I'm really excited about that.

If you have time, go check out the web site. Watch the videos. We are so blessed (and greedy!) in this country that most children open a gift on Christmas morning, throw it down and get another one (I've known a few like that) and it absolutely broke my heart to see how happy these children are with a box of crayons or a bouncy ball. It really puts things in perspective.

I chose a plastic box that I got for a dollar at Walmart. I thought she might like something more sturdy to store her things in and then I read somewhere online that some of these children carry water in those plastic boxes and I just squalled. Perspective indeed. What a difference a dollar might make to her.

When they receive these boxes, they are also given a booklet printed in their own language telling the story of the greatest gift of all, God's gift to us, His Son Jesus.

I am so excited to see where my shoe box ends up! Jesus already knows who she is, where she is and He's already seen her face when she opens it.

I really hope she's always wanted a tambourine.

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-11-09T19:36:00.003-05:00

Today, I'm loving that the college is offering the communications classes I needed to take at NIGHT so that I can take them!! These are the specialized classes in the electronics program I'm in and back in April, they were not going to offer them to evening students spring semester. So I considered driving to Macon a couple nights a week to take them at the college up there and I considered quitting my job and going to school during the day but what I actually DID about it was pray. And guess what? He totally worked it out for me! I'm going to get to take the classes I need to get my degree after all. I signed up for a psychology class online, too. I have my second co-op interview at the base next month and we'll see how that goes. This is my second shot, everybody else in my class is going for their third. I was robbed of my first chance last December but I'm completely fine with it now and really was then, I was just frustrated. It's ALL going to work out the exact way it's supposed to.

Yay!! I'm very happy in my little life right now.

I'm also loving these cool boots that Mama and Daddy gave me as an early Christmas present! They're super cool but they are super warm, too!! Here they are on my feet at the movies last Saturday night when I went to see Paranormal Activity 3. I was too cozy to be scared. :)

Spidey Sunday!

2011-11-06T09:04:00.002-05:00

Spidey sittin' down to some scrambled eggs this morning on his very own Spidey placemat that Mama bought for him. He said, "Thanks, Maw Maw!"

He wanted to use Maw's salt and pepper shakers, too.

Said something about I don't use enough salt. Whatever.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-11-04T22:26:00.007-04:00

My favorite thing about this week was Halloween! It was so much fun!

Colder weather makes me lazy. I just want to curl up with a blanket and do nothing until March. I would have made a very good bear.

Three things that make me happy as of late are 60's and 70's music at Pandora, my coffee in the mornings and the fact that Santa is coming next month!

If I could only wear one kind of shoe for the rest of my life, it would be Birkenstocks!

My personality type is INFP. That is Introvert Intuitive Feeler Perceiver, which means I'm comfortable working and being alone, I trust my gut, I'm warm and friendly and I keep my options open. Yep, that's me.

I have a serious problem resisting french fries right now. I be lovin' me some frozen seasoned crinkle cut fries lately. I bake them on a cookie sheet and then eat 'em with ketchup. Yum!! I also can't seem to stay away from Chick-fil-A's waffle fries lately neither.

My favorite color to wear is black 'cause it's slimming (see FITB #6 above. Ha!) and gray because Larry says he likes me in gray. :)

Happy Weekend!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-11-02T13:28:00.005-04:00

Today, on this BEAUTIFUL fall day, I am loving another chance to compost something! My friend, Jami, gave me this cup yesterday that is made from corn and is 100% compostable.

This is that Sun Chips bag that's been in my compost since June 2010. SIXTEEN MONTHS. And as you can see, you can still read the writing on the bag. It was advertised to break down in 14 weeks IF your compost maintained a high enough temperature (130 degrees Fahrenheit). My compost doesn't get that hot but they SAID it would STILL BREAK DOWN under lower temps, IT'D JUST TAKE LONGER. Longer than 64 weeks?? Come on. I don't think it's happenin'.

So we're gonna see what our little corn cup does. I'll keep y'all posted! Thanks, Jami and John!!

I'm loving the fall gorgeousness that's going on around the condostead this week!

And I'm loving these few things I have that belonged to my Maw. I went Saturday with Mama, Ami and Brian to Maw's house and it was a pretty rough day. Our family is doing what's got to be done, sort through her things, you take this, I'll take that, but it was overwhelming and very, very sad. Very sad, too, that her little Easter bunnies and eggs and chickies were still out because the last time she lived there, it was Eastertime.

Ami spied these ceramic mushroom canisters and said they looked like they belonged with me. Thank you, sissy. They sure do.

I thought these New Orleans Bourbon Street lamp post salt and pepper shakers were just the coolest thing! I don't remember Maw ever going to New Orleans but she and Major traveled a lot early in their marriage so maybe they took a trip over there.

This was really the only thing I truly wanted. It's an aerial oil painting that Major had made right after they married in 1976. I have loved it since I was a child. It's of their house and land in Montezuma. You can even see Maw's car parked at the back door where she always parked. So much about this picture makes me cry. The trees near the road that were like a forest to a little girl. I'd go in there and hide! It was dark and cool and cozy. There was a fig tree closer to the house and I ate so many figs one day, I got a bellyache. To the right of the house, they had a huge garden and we'd go pick peas and tomatoes and squash in the summertime before Daddy started planting his own garden every year. I saw a snake one time in the shed out back and it scared the crap outta me! I sat on Major's old blue tractor many a summer day pretending that I was driving it. Just seeing the house reminds me of years and years of Thanksgivings and Christmas Eves spent there, of afternoons spent there when Maw would come pick me up from school because I was sick (and sometimes when I wasn't!) and she'd take me back to her house and fry me some cornbread and we'd watch the stories all afternoon. Just so, so many memories of that warm, comforting old house. This picture means SO much to me. I will cherish it forever.

Ain't it so beautiful?

You really have no idea.

Hello November

2011-11-01T22:18:00.002-04:00

Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn."

~ Elizabeth Lawrence

Hello, November with your once-in-our-lifetime eleven elevens. Today is the only time we'll ever see 11/1/11 as the date! Did you realize that??

Hello, November with your extra hour of sleep. Zzzzzzzz....

Hello, November with your day to honor our brave veterans. Thank you for an extra day with my baby. On 11/11/11. Another day we'll never see again.

Hello, November with your day to be thankful for all we have and on that day, I'll be really, really thankful for my mama's dressing.

Hello, November with your Christmas lights, falling leaves and cold nights.

Hello, November. I'm glad you're here. Don't be so quick to leave, okay??

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T20:59:00.001-04:00

We had SO much fun today at the office! It was our Halloween party/birthday party for Dr. Niebaum all rolled into one good old time.

I dressed up as a hippie chick. No real stretch there! :) It was Larry's idea for me to wear his Army helmet liner. I added the peace sign and daisy. I thought it turned out so cute!!

I think this is all us girls except for Michelle and Dr. P. Left to right, it's me, Lisa S as Spiderwoman, Shannon as a hippie chick/Diana Ross, Lisa P as a GOOD witch, Cheryl and Norma, AKA Spongebob.

We had lots of yummy stuff to eat!!

Chicken and dumplings

Norma made Mississippi Mud for Dr. Niebaum.

It's his favorite!

Witch's Brew

(a really good cider that Norma makes!)

My personal favorite, Norma's cheese straws.

Cheryl's yummy cheesy apples!

Caramel cupcakes

Popcorn balls!

Lisa carving a pumpkin

Norma getting ready to carve hers

Lisa thinking Norma needs a little help! Ha!

Lisa's jack-a-lantern that she gave me to put on my porch tonight for my little trick-or-treaters. I had 22 tonight! And enough candy for 82. I had zombies and vampires and a princess and a clown and Mario and Luigi and more zombies and vampires. No ghosts, witches or Spideys.

I enjoyed every second of it and it was over waaaaay before I wanted it to be.

Spidey Sunday!

2011-10-30T19:57:00.000-04:00

Spidey helping me get the candy ready for tomorrow night!

He just HAD to try on a pair of the vampire teeth.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-10-28T00:14:00.005-04:00

When I was a kid, I wanted to be a nurse when I grewup. Now that I’ve worked in a doctor’soffice for 32 months, I know why that didn’t work out. :)

As an adult, my dream job would be working for a companyor organization that protects the environment. Ireally don’t know where I’ll be in the next year or so but I do know that Iwant to be somewhere making something greener.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be just like Mary EllenWalton. I sure had the sassy mouthfor it!

I scored many a wax lip with this old girl.

The childhood costume that I remember most was THIS WITCHAND I ACTUALLY FOUND IT ONLINE!!!! Iremember this costume and mask SO well. It was awesome. HOT but awesome.

My favorite Halloween treat when I was a child was homemadeRice Krispy treats. I’m a child ofthe 1970’s and we got lots of homemadestuff on Halloween. Cookies, brownies,caramel apples, Rice Krispy treats. Youdidn’t have to worry about folks putting harmful things in your candy bag.

The time I got in the biggest trouble as a child was whenme and Ricky were staying with Grandma when Ami was born and Grandma’s neighborhad a horse that got out of his pen. Wechased that horse down a very busy Highway 49 with Grandma hollerin’ at us tocome back, waving her pink bedroom shoe at us from the front porch. She tore us up when we got back and thenDaddy tore us up when he came to get us. I can’t even remember what happened to that horse.

I get daily inspiration from sweet toothless baby grins.

Happy Weekend!!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-10-26T17:15:00.008-04:00

Today I'm loving this blog post that Brandy wrote about "sticking it to the man". It's hilarious. Brandy mentioned some things that she and her family do to stick it to the man and I just loved it. I just adore her.

Just in case a hippie heart doesn't beat inside you and you have no idea what we're talking about, sticking it to the man just basically means bucking against anything that is in a position of power over you. That could mean the electric company. That could mean the government.

Here are some other ways you can stick it to the man. Just do ONE. I promise it will make you smile.

Don't buy anything new.

Don't get into debt.

Wear socks with holes.

VOTE!

Get your books from the library.

Don't pay ANY fees at your bank! Move your money!!

Walk on the grass.

Do random acts of kindness.

Grow your own food! And when you can't, buy local and buy in season.

Write a blog! :)

Be socially and politically aware. Don't be so subjective to mainstream media. Seek out independent sources of information, listen to people from different walks of life and those whose opinions may differ from your own.

Refuse to be one of millions in that docile herd of mindless consumers who...hey, pull over! McDonald's!!

Dance!!

Spidey Sunday!

2011-10-23T16:01:00.000-04:00

Me gettin' a little help from Spidey

(who's gettin' a little help from me!)

raking the backyard! :)

Spaghetti with garlic bread crumbs and parsley

2011-10-22T18:57:00.005-04:00

I saw this on Pinterest last week and I decided to make it today! I used everything I already had and it turned out really, really good!

It's super easy, too.

Cook some thin spaghetti and drain.
Saute some parsley, oregano and garlic in olive oil and a tablespoon of butter.
Toss spaghetti in oil mixture and top with some roasted garlic bread crumbs.

A delicious simple way to make spaghetti!

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-10-21T20:52:00.001-04:00

Nothing says fall like pumpkins and mums on the porch.

My favorite autumn tradition is carving pumpkins, dressing up for Halloween and going to the fair. I don't even mind raking leaves anymore. Much. :)

My favorite fall treat is pumpkin anything (muffins, breads, coffee, bubble bath)!

Fall makes me think of what's to come. The beginning of my favorite part of the year -- Thanksgiving and Christmas!

Autumn's free-form word association, GO! Crunchy leaves, rosy cheeks, brown, orange, pumpkin pie!

My go-to outfit in the fall is guess?? :) My yoga pants and a long-sleeved cotton t-shirt! Also, my flannel jammie pants.

My favorite fall holiday is Thanksgiving. I love, love, love Halloween and giving out candy to my little trick-or-treaters but there's just no comparison to Thanksgiving and being with my family and eating my mama's turkey and dressing. Y'all. If you ain't never had none of my mama's dressing, bless your heart.

Happy Fall, y'all! Do something warm and cozy this weekend!

I vant to eat your cereal!

2011-10-20T21:00:00.004-04:00

Count Chocula was my most favorite cereal when I was growing up. You couldn't get it all year, just in the fall around Halloween. Mama got us all of the monster cereals, the Count and his buddies, BooBerry and FrankenBerry. But the Count was our favorite. It was more chocolatey than Cocoa Puffs and it was full of those yummy crunchy marshmallows. This is what the box looked like in the 70's when we were kids and gobblin' that cereal up while we watched Saturday morning cartoons.

I even remember having these toys!

This is what the box looks like today. Or rather tonight 'cause I got me some!

He looks a little skinny these days. Must be the whole grain. :)

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-10-19T14:25:00.003-04:00

I'm loving that today actually feels like fall!! It's a brisk (and windy) 55 degrees! The high was 62 and that was this morning. It's 'sposed to be 37 tomorrow night! Woo hoooo!! I might get to wear my boots this week! Fall is my favorite season. I wish we could stay like this until April. I hate winter. Ugh.

I'm loving the chicken and dumplin's that I made today! We were talking about them at work today and how gooooood they'd be in this cool weather so when I got home, I made some. I'd never made them with store-bought dumplings before, I usually just make them the way Mama does, the dumplin's I was raised on that look kinda like this:

Mama's looks better but this was as close as I could find online. I don't think I've ever paused long enough to get a picture of her dumplings! Ha!

This is how mine turned out today! Pretty dang tasty, too.

I boiled a couple of chicken breasts, shredded them and added a can of cream of chicken soup, cooked the strips in the broth with some salt and pepper and mixed it all together. Easy squeezy!

And I'm loving Words With Friends on Facebook! It's just a simple Scrabble game but you can play real time with your friends or just whenever you have a minute. LOVE. If we're friends on Facebook, let's play!

Spidey Sunday!

2011-10-16T17:05:00.000-04:00

Here he is trying on Larry's old Army helmet.

He really liked that it says "Spider" on the chin strap.

Seven random things...

2011-10-15T22:05:00.001-04:00

...about ME! My friend, Kim, nominated me for a Tell Me About Yourself blogger award 'cause she thinks my blog is great! :) Thanks, Kim!! I think your blog is pretty great, too! And funny and inspiring and just what I need to read sometimes!

To claim this award, I have to do a couple of things. I have to tell seven totally random things about myself, pass the award on to seven other awesome bloggers and thank and link back the person who awarded me, which I think I've already done. I hope. :)

So here we go!

Seven Random Things About Me

1. I have a little scar on my right cheek that has been there since the moment I was born. From forceps pulling me out. I didn't want to come out. Me and Mama had us a good thing going and I was FINE with it.

2. I hate yogurt. Of any kind. I don't care if you put chocolate sprinkles on top, I can't eat it. I know it's good for you and would be oh-so-helpful in my weight loss journey but dang, it's clabber. Jerry Clower said so.

3. I love to watch scary movies! Alone. At home. On my sofa. Where I can scream and sometimes let an ugly word slip and laugh and yell at the victims and if they're real stupid, tell 'em they NEED killing.

4. I can wire up a circuit that will light two LEDs that blink. :)

5. I cannot stand a ringing telephone. Or talking on the phone. And in my current job, I'm a receptionist. I know. Makes no sense.

6. I can type really fast. The last time I was tested and timed, it was around 85 words per minute. I'm pretty dang accurate, too.

7. I almost never use my dishwasher anymore. Unless I'm cooking a big meal for my family or something. As much as I LOATHED washing dishes as a teenager (and that was probably because Mama MADE me), I actually prefer to hand wash my dishes now. There's something therapeutic about having your hands down in warm, soapy water and washing dishes clean. Just me?? :)

Okay, I nominate these awesome bloggers to do the same! Tell Me About Yourself!

Ami
Margie
Brandy
Morgan
Jenn
Amy
Shari

Spidey's fair adventures

2011-10-15T19:51:00.025-04:00

Here we are right after I won him.

Don't we look so happy??

Here he is checking out my camera.

Here we are listening to a very good country band play. Spidey said he never really liked country music. That's when I found out he has a squeaker in his head. I squeezed his head real hard.

Here he is protecting me 'cause

I'm windblown and tired of pictures.

Here we are learning how to stand up.

Here he is all laid out in the grass.

We still have to work on that standing thing.

Maybe shoes will help.

Here he is posing with the paddle boats behind him. He said he wanted to ride one but I told him somebody would just try to use him for a float.

Here he is sharing that beautiful sunset with us.

Almost time to go home!

It was a great day!!

Spidey rested most of the day today. He had a busy day yesterday, what with getting a new home and family and all.

Wonder what he'll be up to tomorrow??

Fair fever...caught it!

2011-10-15T18:45:00.007-04:00

Yesterday, Brian, Ami and I went to the Georgia National Fair in Perry. We had the absolute BEST time. Pretty much the best fair experience of our lives. We've been many times (after all, this is the 22nd year of this fair!), seen countless concerts there (Alabama, Vince Gill, Trisha Yearwood, Loretta Lynn, Travis Tritt & Marty Stewart, John Berry and oh, did I mention Alabama? We saw Alabama every time they played there. :D), so we've had a few not-so-good times there. Some years, it rained the entire time, some years we had to park out in the field almost to dang Pulaski County and walk for days to get to the gate and then it took us HOURS to get out of there, some years it was summertime hot and miserable and other years, we just skipped it 'cause GOD, what a nightmare.

This year made up for ALL that. It was perfect.

We chose to go on the last Friday afternoon of the fair, as a mini photo tour for our Facebook group, Macon County Georgia Photo Walk. We went to just basically take pictures and eat but the fair had other plans for us. The fair wanted us to have FUN and have GOOD memories of it this time. We knew it was probably going to be a pretty dang good day when we got there and got to park ON THE PAVEMENT and not out there two miles from Elko.

Here are some pictures from our day! If you're friends with us on Facebook, you can see SO many more. I took 200 myself and Ami and Brian took over a thousand together.

Caramel and chocolate apples

Me picking up ducks! :)

The girl running this game was the sweetest thing! It was $3 to play. I picked up one duck and it had SMALL written on the bottom. She said "Try again". I picked up another duck and it had SMALL written on the bottom. She said, "Try again. Here, get this one." and she pointed to the one that I have in my right hand in this picture, the one with the little green dot that says MED!!! Medium!! I get a medium prize!! Yay!! She told me I could have anything on that wall and I picked a 2-foot inflatable Spider-Man.

Here we are after I won!

Me and my Spidey.

Me trying to decide what to eat.

There were TOO many choices!

I ended up getting a corn dog... :)

...and this thing here.

Chocolate-covered cheesecake. On a steeeeeek.

It was absolute heaven. I didn't think I could eat it all and I tried to share it with Ami and Brian but Brian didn't want any and Ami couldn't cut it because it was still really firm. She got a little piece off, though.

Amazing what you can do when your feet are to the fire. Ha!

See my teeth marks???

Ami's funnel cake.

Here's a picture I took of Ami and Brian.
I think it's probably my favorite one ever of them.
They look so sweet and happy!!

We found a little grassy spot with a bench near the water and sat there as the sun was starting to go down. I don't believe I've ever sat and watched the sun set behind a Ferris wheel so I have to recommend that you do it, too, at least once. It was pretty awesome.

We stopped on our way out for another snack and Brian got a pork chop sandwich that he said was absolutely delicious and Ami and I split some Mozzarella Fingers with pizza sauce. Yum!! Here's a pic of one of our Mozzarella Fingers and my fingers. :)

Beautiful ending to an amazing day.

He's making a list...

2011-10-13T15:39:00.001-04:00

I know it's October and we ain't even got to the candy yet but I have been instructed by Santa to get on the stick and make a Christmas list!

I added some things to my Amazon wish list today and I added a button on the side of my blog that links directly to it. It's a start!

I tried, Santa! :)

Southern belle secrets

2011-10-12T20:48:00.001-04:00

These southern belle secrets are from a tumblr blog but I've been seeing them on Pinterest for months. I cannot tell you how much I love them!!!
Here are some of my favorites!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-10-12T18:41:00.003-04:00

I'm loving that the sun is finally going to peek out tomorrow and then step right on out and shine come Friday! It has rained all. week. long.

I'm loving that today is my Friday! I'm off until Monday!!

I'm loving that I'm going to the fair Friday with Ami and Brian! It should be a gorgeous day to take pictures!

And pick up ducks!

This was always my favorite thing to
play at the fair when I was little.

No losers! Every duck wins a prize! Ha!

You know I'mma pick me up a duck Friday.

And ride sheep!

This I HAVE to see.

They let little kids under 60 pounds
RIDE A SHEEP.

It's called Mutton Busting. Bwaaaah!

See ya Friday, Mr. Ferris Wheel.

I can't wait!!

Honor begins at home

2011-10-09T20:07:00.000-04:00

I hadn't planned to go see the movie, Courageous, last night. I wanted to see it but I thought it could wait, I thought, "it'll be playing a while, no need to go right now", I thought I might even wait until it came out on DVD next year.

What a difference a day makes.

I was on the phone with Larry late yesterday afternoon and he urged me to go so that I could tell him about it today. That's what we do. I go see movies and then tell him about them in as much detail as I can remember, usually while he's munching on chicken wings. It's one of our things. He says he always feels like he's seen the movies, too, when I'm done.

So that's what I did. I got dressed and made it to the 8:15 showing over at the Galleria.

Now that I've had time to absorb this phenomenal, amazing movie and have shared it with Larry, all I can still say is wow. This movie, made by the good folks at Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany (Allbenny, for those of you who don't know how we pronounce it!), Georgia, the same people who brought us Facing the Giants and Fireproof, is the best movie I have seen in a long, long time, maybe ever. I laughed and cried and then laughed (the Snake Kings scene is HILARIOUS!) and cried some more. Real tears, running down my face. It is so profound and potentially life changing that all I can do is tell you to go see it. I could never do it justice. Just go. Take your daddy, your brother, your church, your coworkers, just take the whole town! It is a must see!!

It came in #5 the first week in the box office. That is pretty impressive for a Christian movie. We should really get the word out there and get more people to see it. It truly should be in that #1 spot but more importantly, everyone should be given the opportunity to see it and put the message to work in their own lives.

Here's the trailer. No way could I even begin to say it better.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-10-07T22:19:00.006-04:00

Something popular that I can't stand or don't "get" is Dancing With The Stars. I've tried to watch it a time or two but I just wasn't impressed. And who picks these "stars" anyway? Bristol Palin and Nancy Grace? Come onnnnnn...

Something unpopular that I LOVE is old country music. I'm talkin' George and my girl, Tammy, Conway and Loretty, Patsy and I do love me some Charlie Rich. Country music has NOT been the same since they closed the Ryman.

When I've had a bad day, I take a nap. When I've had a good day, I take a nap. Ha!

I would prefer a night at home in my jammies doing laundry and cleaning to going out and partying any day. Like tonight. :)

Something that makes me nervous is not knowing what's coming next. I wish I could just roll with it and be open and flexible to God's plan and some days I do better than others but I want to know, I want to know, I want to KNOW. You know??

Something worth fighting for is LOVE. If you are so blessed to find THE ONE that God created just for you, you hold on to him (or her!) for dear life. Do whatever you have to do to protect that relationship and grow old in that love. It may not be easy but nothing worth having is easy. That's how you know.

When people think of me, I hope they think that I'm a good wife, daughter, sister, aunt and friend and that I have a good heart. And that I'm funny as all get out. :)

Happy Weekend!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-10-05T22:53:00.001-04:00

I'm loving my new-to-me Dolce & Gabbana

purse that Dr. Patrenos gave me today!

It's such a beautiful color for fall, it's butter soft and soooo roomy! I love how it just lays open like that. I have room for all my stuff and then some. It's gonna be perfect for smuggling Skittles and bottles of green tea when I go to the movies! :) Thanks, Dr. P!! I promise I will take good care of it and it'll be happy with me. <3

I'm also loving this little picture I found on Pinterest tonight.

Steve Jobs passed away this evening after a long battle with cancer. My first computer, at the urging of Brian and Ami who already had one, was an iMac. An original Bondi Blue G3 iMac that I bought in 1999. That computer made me an Apple snob. And that old girl will STILL fire up and pull up one page on the internet. She just needs more memory to do more but she's still a'kickin'. She was my only computer for six years and then Larry got me my beloved iBook for Christmas in 2005. She's still kickin', too. I had to buy a PC (the horror!) last year for an online class that my Mac wasn't compatible with and its desktop display right now as we speak says, "I wish I was a Mac". RIP Steve, you old square peg in a round hole. Thanks for helping me to be one, too.

Ten-four

2011-10-04T23:04:00.005-04:00

I couldn't resist paying homage today on this 10-4 to one of the greatest movies evah.

Smokey And The Bandit.

Cledus Snow:Hey Bandit. Me an' Fred got a question.
Bandit:What you an' Fred want?
Cledus Snow:How come we's doin' this?
Bandit:Why d'you ask?
Cledus Snow:Well, they said it ain't never been done before.
Bandit:Well, that's the reason, son.
Cledus Snow:[shrugs] That's good with Fred.
Bandit:[laughing] Ten-four

RIP Snowman and Fred.

Over and out.

Weekend Wonders

2011-10-02T21:19:00.002-04:00

We're only two days into October and

I'm already ready to do this to my porch.

Ain't they gorgeous??

I had a pretty awesome weekend. I woke up both days to temps in the 40's, got to wear my new yoga pants and my favorite fluffy sweater and SOCKS. Yay!!!

Larry and I had one and a half ('cause I went to church this morning) fabulous days together and got the shock of our entire DOC-controlled lives yesterday. The vendor who provides the food for the visitation room has apparently decided that he's made enough money and he has abandoned us. We've noticed during the past few weeks that the candy bars looked the same and I mentioned to Larry that I thought they were going to make us buy what was in there before they put anything different in there and I don't think I was too far from the truth. We heard today that the company has filed bankruptcy, which completely blows my mind 'cause how can somebody file for bankruptcy when they're making a fortune off inmate families??! $3.50 for six chicken wings. That's 58 cents a piece. I mean, come on now. This ain't Hooter's. It's ridiculous how these people take advantage of us because they CAN. There is no competition. You pay it or you do without.

Okay, to the shock. I got a little sidetracked there. Ha! That's funny 'cause that's the name of the vendor. Sidetrack Vending. Anyway, so the two Coke machines stopped working and after about an hour of us sittin' there 'bout to DIE of thirst, the guards bring out cups and ice and two huge coolers of red Kool-Aid and water!!

Those of you who know nothing of prison life probably are thinking, "So? What's the big deal?" Those of you who live the prison life probably feel heart palpitations bubbling up in your chest just reading about it because you know that this was HUGE.

In my 23 years of walking this walk with Larry, I can tell you that this nor anything remotely like this has ever happened. The DOC plays this game about how important family time is and how that connection with loved ones is so vital to the rehabilitation of the guys unfortunate enough to live there but that's just it. It's a game. It's for the newspapers, for the TV interviews, for the show. They make it so difficult to even get in there to see your loved ones, the lonnnnng lines out in all kinds of weather, the scrutinizing of every stitch of clothing you have on, the nasty attitudes simply because you are there bothering them, forcing them to get up and work. They'd rather you not be there and they let you know it.

Can you tell they're not really my favorite people? Ha! But I pray for them. I pray for them to find other jobs. :)

But what happened yesterday chipped away some of my discontent with them. It was such a small gesture and to the outside world, it was something you'd expect in a situation like that. A show of humanity, compassion, kindness. I saw Jesus all over it. Yep. If you look hard enough, you can see Him in everything. Even in cups of red Kool-Aid.

This weekend was pretty awesome. I got to love on and laugh with my baby, I got me some Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin stuff at Bath and Body Works (thanks, Mama! I used my birthday gift card!), I opened my windows and let that cool air in while I got my house super duper clean, I went and got recharged for the week at church this morning and I made one of my favorite comfort suppers tonight. Rosemary chicken and roasted potatoes. Yum!!

Pretty awesome indeed.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-09-30T22:14:00.005-04:00

My bathtub is one of my favorite hiding places. Not that I need to hide but I just like hangin' out in there. Bubbles, candles, fluffy towels, warm water. It's good for the soul!

My greatest strength is my patience. If I'm nothing else, I am a patient girl! I believe in that saying, "good things come to those who wait" and boy, I got some good things coming!!

My greatest weakness is that I'm really tough on myself. My job, my grades, even my marriage. Everything has to be perfect. I'm SO blessed to have coworkers, teachers and a husband who love me anyway!

My car is a silver 2008 Nissan Altima. I bought it brand new when I traded my 10-year-old Altima that had 180,000 miles on it and a new transmission. :) I LOVE Nissans. Prolly won't ever have anything else.

In high school, I was painfully shy and extremely self-conscious. Larry helped me so much with that. He probably regrets it now 'cause I never shut up. :) People who didn't know me back then cannot believe that I was ever SHY. Ha!

Simple things make me happy. I don't like jewelry (unless it's my wedding ring set or Larry's old dog tag), I'd rather have a plant or seeds than cut flowers and I don't like a lot of stuff around me.

As for this weekend, I'm looking forward to opening up my windows and letting that cool newborn fall air in, being with Larry 'cause I ain't seen him in two weeks and I'm pretty much gonna eat him up and just chillin' at home. Literally! It's supposed to be in the 40's at night here!! I got a new pair of Old Navy yoga pants just burnin' a hole in my dresser drawer!

Happy Weekend!!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2011-09-29T00:10:00.002-04:00

Yeah, I know. It's Thursday.

Long day. :(

I'm loving The Brave Girls Club!

Ami introduced me to these daily inspirational emails several months ago and I just love them. Sometimes, they say exactly what I need to hear on the exact day I need to hear it. Like today.

I'm also loving that this week is just about over and that we have this to look forward to!

A little cozy fallness!

Groovy fall decorations!

2011-09-26T19:08:00.004-04:00

Even though it was still 90 degrees today, I got up in the attic and got my fall stuff down and put it out. Maybe if I get my house ready for fall, it'll come on. Whatcha think??

Here's my mantel, pretty much like last year.

'Cept where did that bear come from?

Closeup of my centerpiece that I'm STILL proud of!

I just LOVE these pumpkins I got at Hobby Lobby last year!

And there's that bear again...

My foyer table

Cute little punkin' I got for my dining room table today at Hobby Lobby and that same yummy pumpkin caramelly candle I had last year.

AND the Peace Bear...

Another cutie punkin' I got today at HL

to go in my beachy bathroom.

And Peace, trying to hide.

We SEE you.

When this little thingy goes on the door,

it's fall, y'all!!

Happy Fall from me and Peace!

First weekend of fall

2011-09-25T13:46:00.003-04:00

Well, it certainly doesn't feel much like fall this weekend but the calendar says it's official so I'm going with that. The high today is 91 degrees. I'm going to enjoy the last warm days of summer/early fall in Georgia because I hate, hate, hate being cold.

Larry and I celebrate a milestone this weekend and we didn't even get to be together! Everybody say, "Awwwwww!" He's working this weekend. He's the agape leader for Kairos and they're doing a walk at Central this weekend. I am so proud of him and his commitment to Kairos and his role in telling others about Jesus that I don't whine much when a weekend like this comes up. I just worry that it's too much, that he's not appreciated like he should be. Heck, if they paid him $100,000 to do it, it wouldn't be enough for me.

Our milestone is 23 years since we met! September 25, 1988. A Sunday. This is what we looked like back then! I just barely remember being that young. I think I look better NOW at 44 than I did at 21. He looks the same. Fine as muscadine wine in the summertime. ;)

So I've been hangin' at home this weekend, resting my foot. It feels a lot better today! Wanna see? Okay, well, maybe it doesn't LOOK any better but it does feel better. I think that stuff I got reduced the swelling some. Plus, I've had it propped up most of the weekend, too, and I'm sure that has helped.

I worked a little while yesterday morning and then I went and saw the movie, Straw Dogs. I loved it. An hour into the movie, I was cheering for the bad guys because the two "victims" were just stupid. The girl was a brazen hussy, plain and simple, and the guy, smart and sweet and peace-loving as he was, just got involved too much. Yeah, I'll say it. They pretty much asked for it. The main bad guy was my Eric. He can do no wrong in my eyes anyway. :) It's a great movie. Had me on the edge of my seat the entire two hours and left me with my mouth hangin' open at the end.

I slept late this morning and then I got up and cooked!

Beef tips, rice and gravy

Homemade mac and cheese

Peach cobbler

Here's some cobbler next to the peach ice cream

that Daddy made for me earlier in the summer.

Yummmmmm.

I guess it's not really goodbye, summer. More like so long. Farewell. It'll be warm here until November and be hot again in March!

I love Georgia. The Lord knew exactly where to put me.

Fill in the blank Friday!

2011-09-23T20:04:00.010-04:00

The best thing I did all week was buy some of this for my poor foot. What a difference it made!! It's identical to Biofreeze and it's over-the-counter. I got it at Walmart for $7!!

Freshly-washed sheets make me super happy.

The best thing about my life right now is that everything seems to be falling into place!

Pets are just like family.

With cooler weather, I'm looking forward to being able to walk outside and not get eaten alive by skeeters.

Something that's on my wish list right now is a MacBook Pro. And some of these -- reusable produce bags.

This weekend, I'm going to work tomorrow morning, go see Straw Dogs tomorrow afternoon, rest my foot and study for a test Tuesday night!

Happy Weekend!!

Ever wonder what tendonitis looks like??

2011-09-22T22:50:00.001-04:00

Well, wonder no more!!

Yep. This is mah foot.

And? Ow.

My left foot has been a complete train wreck for seven years. I injured it walking on the beach with my sister-in-law, Debi, SEVEN summers ago and it ain't never been right since. I've had an MRI (which showed tendonitis), I wore a boot cast (which I affectionately called "Frank" for Frankenstein boot) for an entire HOT Georgia summer and I've had months of physical therapy.

It gets better but it has never been well.

It has also NEVER been like this.

Now there's this little red swolt-up golf ball on the top of my ankle. Dr. Google said that's inflammation that has oozed up between two bones in my foot. It looks a little angry, don't it?? It feels like it is completely pissed off and looking for somebody to slap.

Ow.