Spring Lowe's

What I wanted.

What I got.

Last summer was a beast in NW Louisiana.

We lost ALL (well, almost all)
of our landscaping shrubs
due to intense heat.

Today husband and I went here.

Nope.

We could not agree.

Angel, that I am . . .

I deferred to my Guy,

with the agreement that
"He would landscape this year,
but if anything dies I get to

choose what I want next year".

Wonder what the neighbors will think

of this years landscaping?

Geeked Up and In Love!

I am totally GEEKED UP

and IN LOVE!!

You see, my dishwasher,

like many newer models,

has the silverware rack on the door.

I.HATE.THAT.

It doesn't hold enough and is always

full before there are enough

dirty dishes to run a full load.

Then, one glorious day

I found

*THIS*

on Amazon.

Yes, it was over-priced at

$39.99.

But I love it anyway.

The 3 compartments separate

so I can use one or all of them, as needed.

It fits everywhere, so I can place

it as I want!!

Better than sliced bread

and darn near equal

to Chocolate!!

One of life's great mysteries

We have several of these in our home.
They take up space.
They collect dust.

And sometimes they make a loud

ringing noise!

This is what I do when the
noise begins.

BUT,

let my cell phone ring when I'm
out & about and I will -

Fall to my knees in a public place,
empty my purse
and hurt anyone who gets between
me and my phone!

One of life's great mysteries.

Know anyone else who does this?



LOL!!



I drove into Sonic for my usual Diet Cherry Coke.
I pushed the red speaker button to place my order -
This is what I heard:

"Hello.
My name is Mr. (insert 16 yr old boy name.
      How can I make you smile today?."

R U kidding me?
*giggle/blush*

"L" is really for "List"



Call my Mother

Weed & Mulch Garden

Get back on track with  Diet

Walk at least a mile each day

Breathe life into my church responsibilities

Give my Blog a Facelift

Make an Eye Dr. appointment

Call the insurance company

Make my Boob Job consultation appointment

Invite friends for Saturday night (?)

WHAT'S ON YOUR LIST
FOR THIS WEEK?

(I was teasin'
about the Boob Job)
*giggle

Here's a smile for you!

Look who loves Sonic Cherry Coke!

Friendship.Failed.

I set out to make a new friend 3 wks ago.

The relationship has failed.

I.Am.NOT.To.Blame.

"Jenny Craig sucks!".

There.  I said it.

I want to lose some poundage before

Summer and I thought Jenny Craig

would help me. 

Let it be known that Jenny Craig is no friend of mine!
(So thankful I only ordered the
One Week Trial Package of food.

Blech!

Lean Cuisine is my new Friend.

I like her, even though I admit I

am beginning to grow a little tired

of her company.

This is my Helper.

I loaded it onto my ipad

and have quickly become

codependent.

(this also loads to iphones)

Now the BIG QUESTION,

"How have I done?".

-7 1/2 lbs

(today was my 3 week weigh in)

Unfortunately there is no speeding bullet,

but at least I'm headed in the right direction.

I use Lean Cuisine for dinner

then calorie count for other meals.

 

This is my fav diet treat!

I often put this 150 cal treat

into my diet plan.  YUM!

What works for you?
Got any tips for me?



Score one for Mom!

I've spent some time lurking around your Blogs

and I.Love.What.I.Am.Seeing.
Your homes are beautifully decorated
and ready for Christmas.
You make me feel so inferior so inspired.

I must confess however, there is nary a
Christmas bell, bauble, or bulb
in my entire house.
We've had 2 recent birthdays within
our household, as well as a major church
function (which I organize)
and I am tired.

Not to worry.
Today I said to Princess,
"Would you like to invite your boyfriend over
and the two of you could decorate our
Christmas Tree?"

"Why yes!", she thought that would be fun.

"I'm one Smart (Christmas) Cookie!"

Merry Christmas All!!

Say what?

I.AM.POSTING.AS.AN.AUTHORITY.

I know what the well-dressed woman

is wearing this Christmas season . . .

She is wearing pajamas made from this

festive Christmas plaid.

And with it she is wearing -

Black high-heeled pumps!

I know this because I saw

this well-dressed woman

today at iHop.

Say what??

Turkey Talk

TURKEY TALK

It was a traditional Thanksgiving.

We are a traditional family.

We do things the traditional way. 

Adult place setting.

Children's Table.

My oldest daughter, Amy, (Land of Fluff)

sets a beautiful table.

"Eat your heart out Martha Stewart!"

Now that I'm home I've been thinking about
our weekend and Thanksgiving.
To an outsider looking in it would
probably look perfect.
It wasn't.
Sometimes some of us got a bit cranky.
Sometimes we weren't as considerate
as we should have been.
Sometimes things didn't rise to our
expectations.
Sometimes things didn't go as planned.
That's the "real" part, the part that
doesn't show up in a photo.
We are a family of "real" folks who
celebrate the fact that we are bound
together by the bonds of love that
are far stronger than our flaws.
That's something to celebrate!

The exception to this, of course,
was our Granddolls -
which we all know
"can-do-no-wrong"!

Sweet, Kaylee, the "Mother Teresa" of our family.
This girl's heart is pure gold.

Funny Paige, who is always on the computer
and misses having her picture taken.
(I swear she'll own Microsoft someday.)

And Feisty Grace, who entertains
and makes sure there is never a dull moment.

How was your Thanksgiving?
I'd love to know.

Sweet Sixteen

When I turned 16 we went on a family picnic.

I loved it.

Do you remember your 16th birthday

and what you did to celebrate?

 Turning 16 is now considered a highly monumental birthday
and as such it is usually celebrated in some type of unique way. 
Is it that way where you live? 

It seems to me this is something "new"
with this generation of teens - especially with girls.

Princess will turn 16 during Thanksgiving week.

We are having her party Dec. 4.

Her "party" IS her birthday gift.

We are having a "Crazy Dinner".
Afterwards the kids will be picked up
by a Hummer Limo
and taken to look at Christmas Lights.
They'll come back here for birthday cake.
Party over.

Have you every been to a "Crazy Dinner"?

I've been to several and they have ALL
been great fun.
Here's how it goes -

The guests are seated at the table and given a menu.
The menu makes no sense at all.
They are told to "order" their menu courses
by marking on the menu.
Husband and I will be their waiters.

CRAZY MENU
1.  Eve's Revenge
2.  Kiss
3.  Fool's Gold
4.  Pillow
5.  Roadway
6.  Ouchy Wah Wah!
7.  Sesame Street Fame
8.  Ski Slope
9.  Pirate's Friend
10. Ski Pole
11. Sweetheart's Delight
12. Two fer' One
13. "L 7"
14. Pardner's Home
15. Koala Bear
16. Hot Air.

How would you divide your meal into 4 courses?
What would you choose? (4 items for each course)
The courses are served invidually.
You are served.  You eat.
Those items are removed, then you are served
the next course, and so on.

How did you do with your ordering?

Here's the code for the menu:

1.   Eve's Revenge (applesauce)
2.   Kiss (spoon)
3.   Fool's Gold  (corn)
4.   Pillow  (dinner roll w/butter)
5.   Roadway (fork)
6.   Ouchy Wah Wah!  (mashed potatoes)
7.   Sesame Street Fame (fried chicken)
8.   Ski Slope  (ice cream)
9.   Pirate's Friend  (knife)
10.  Ski Pole (toothpick)
11.  Sweetheart's Delight  (dinner mints)
12.  Two fer' One (mac & cheese)
13. "L 7"  (napkin)
14.  Pardner's Home (salad w/Ranch dressing)
15.  Koala Bear  (Coke)
16.  Hot Air  (straw)

Sometimes people have to eat corn with a toothpick.
Sometimes they are served ice cream first,
alongside the mac & cheese.
It turns out quite CRAZY & funny!

The good news is the Hummer we've arranged
for only seats 9 people - Princess and 8 guests.
We figure 9 people are probably all the
diners husband and I will be able to serve
adequately.

I'll let you know how it goes.
I'm always looking for party ideas
so wanted to share this with you.

Homeschool. This is how we roll.

When people hear that we "Homeschool" they usually have lots of questions.
I get that.  We had lots of questions before we began, too.
Heck, we STILL have lots of questions, as this is our first year to do this.
Princess is a 15 yr old Sophomore who LOVES being homeschooled.

This is how a typical M-F day goes at our house.

Princess begins class no later than 9:00 am.
Uniform code is usually pajamas.

This is our School Hutch.
This is where all the supplies, ie
books, assignments, microscope, pens/pencils
are stored. 
I write her assignments out (at least a month)
in advance.  Each day she looks into her Folder and
finds her assignments.

When she has finished her work (usually around 1:00)
she is to clear the study area
placing all books & such back into
the school hutch.  Finished work is placed under
the paper weight and left at the end of the table.
At some point in the evening I grade her work
and discuss it if necessary.

Princess is only taking 5 subjects this year,
as we are just "learning" how to do this.
(Biology, Algebra 2, Spanish 2, Us History,
English 2)  Next year she will take
7 classes since we are short one class this year.
Her school day will be longer then.

That's it for us.
Is this what you expected from a "homeschooled" day?
Got Questions?  Opinions?

If you homeschool I would love to know what a typical
day is for you and yours.

Ouchy-Wah-Wah!

Look what we allowed.

Youngest DD has been wanting a "nose stud"
and my husband & I finally gave her the OK.
She is 15 (16 in Nov).

Would you allow this?

Please come back to visit me.

I have been AWOL.
Please forgive me and come back
to visit sometime.
Midst all the busy-ness I had
decided to forego my Blog.
But, no-can-do,
I miss you too much.
So please give me another chance.
Pretty please.
I crave   need my Followers
and I miss you terribly.

I've been away on my annual
Girl's Get-a-way Trip.
This year we went to Captiva Island, Fl.
Here are some of my fav take-away memories -

The molestation of John Wayne.

Teeny Tiny size 2 (we hate her) wants to eat
the biggest burger on the menu.

The restaurant was on Periwinkle Street.

You just had to "be there" to truly
enjoy this moment.

Lush!

I'd like to say I PARASAILED!
but actually it was two others in our group.

Pajama Party.



Even a little bit of time for R & R.

I am 61 years old and my advice to you is

"Never Stop Being Silly"

Find time to laugh.

Cultivate friendships.
Do it today.

All these friends are friends I have made online.
Amazing!