Out of the way..........I'm starting to craft!

"Pack away summer linens with sachets so they'll be fragrant when unpacked in the spring"

And that's exactly what I did this morning, I had a couple of fabric squares laying around and no clue what to do with them so I placed a handful of poutporri in the middle of the squares, gathered into a bundle and tied them with a little bow. All done and they smell divine!


It did however catapult me into a crafty mood and I finally decided to pull out my knitting needles and yarn and start on a scarf that I've been wanting to make using this amazing pattern....are you ready for this????


This knitting technique is called My so called scarf on the internet and I found it while blog lurking some of my favorite craft blogs. It looks complicated but it's actually pretty easy and get this, there's even a video on youtube teaching you how to do it. You can just follow right along and that's exactly what I'm going to do.

Here's the video if anyone else is interested in learning the technique.

Me, I'm going to polish up my knitting needles and jump right in, I also have a couple summer dresses to finish for Jasmine (yes for next summer), some old dresses of mine that will be turned into long tops and a candlewicking pillow that has been waiting since Idaho to get finished. OH and that wonderful fabric to make something into, so you can see that I'm going to be busy busy busy.



Halloween is pretty much upon us and I'm happy to report that the kiddos have their costumes all ready. Nicholas is going as a Pirate ARRRRRR (I just had to do that lol).....Jasmine was supposed to be a fairy and we even had the wings and the wand and flower crown but suddenly she decided against it and would rather be a Gothic Enchantress and all because the dress is "oh so pretty". (that's the costume on the left.)

I'm sure there will be pictures to post after the actual Trick or Treating!
We're going to see how many houses we get to because usually back in Idaho, by the time Halloween rolled around it was rainy and really really cold and after 4 or 5 houses the kids were ready to head home.

Seeing as this is Arizona and it's still hot as heck, I figure we may luck out and be able to go to a few neighborhoods, the weather will be great and we'll also have the trusty old wagon along for when the tired little feet want to rest but continue trick or treating.
The good part about this all is that mommy and daddy are paid for our efforts in chocolate candy bars.......they've started bringing them to me instead of having to go through the usual 'mommy stealing candy' routine.


Switching gears to my kitchen, right now I have a Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff going, it smells wonderful and I'll serve it over some hot noodles.

Last night we had some Garlic and Herb Fish Fillets with Tomato and Spinach Rice and a spinach salad to go along.....it's healthy and it was delicious and both kids had seconds and thirds and actually cried for more fish when it was over, guess I'll have to double the recipe next time.

If you want the recipe for my rice, it's on my food blog under Tomato Rice. While you're there be sure to check out my menu plan for this coming week and if you're interested, run on over to Laura's blog and see all the other great menus.



I wish I could stay and chat longer but Nicholas has a bad cold, a fever and a runny nose and he's just cranky and clingy....he's also worried that he won't be fine in time for Halloween and that would be a tragedy wouldn't it?

Anyway, I better get some things done around here, but I leave you with a list of crafts I want to get into and accomplish the next few weeks:

Wastebasket Fabric Cover - I'm thinking of doing this for my bathrooms in coordinating fabrics with the decor in there.

Tote Bags - I'm in love with fabric tote bags, just completely and madly head over heels in love with them so I'm jumping in and hopefully making at least one for me and Jasmine.

Gum Drop Pillows - I think these would be great in the kids bedroom or even some in the living room for watching tv or when they have friends over.

When life gives you pumpkins.............

You turn them into an amazing mouth watering Pumpkin Gingerbread Cake....and I'm not just saying that because I gave you the recipe, but because I made it last night and after one bite I literally felt like I was floating towards heaven. Well, not really, but it was THAT good.

You eat it warm or cold, of course the aroma in the house was the determining factor because by the time the cake came out of the oven, the only thing that kept me from shoving my face into the cake pan was the heat....oh and the fact that it would be socially unacceptable?!?!? LOL

See the whipping cream dripping as it melts???? Tell me you don't want to just stick a fork in it and take a big bite??? I have yet to find a cake that screams Fall as this one does, it's going to become one of our family favorites, that's for sure.

But you can't have cake without some kind of beverage to go along, so I reached for a Viennese Coffee and again, the floating and heaven thing happened all over again.

VIENNESE COFFEE

3 c. strong brewed coffee
3 T. chocolate syrup
1 t. sugar
1/3 c. whipping cream

Optional: 1/3 c. chocolate liqueur
Garnish: whipped topping, chocolate shavings.

Combine coffee, syrup and sugar in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 2 to 2- 1/2 hours. Stir in cream and liqueur, if using. Cover and cook on low setting for an additional 30 minutes, or until heated through. Ladle into mugs, garnish with dollops of whipped topping and chocolate shavings. Makes 4 servings.

*********************

I must say, it was a great day in the kitchen, let's not forget that for dinner I fixed Johnny Marzetti and it was SO good, Nicholas who is the picky-never-hungry eater, had two servings and mmmm'd and ooooo'd throughout the meal.


I still haven't had the chance to go blog hopping, so I know a lot of you are wondering where I am or if I just forgot about you but I didn't and as a matter of fact, I've allocated myself time tonight to do it.

As a matter of fact there's a couple new blogs I found that I'm loving and want to share with you all, so I'll do that soon, maybe tomorrow morning, hopefully, if I remember LOL

Jasmine's reading corner was the best idea I could have had, I just wish I had thought of it a year or two ago but hey, better late then never right? Here she is, actually enjoying reading and as she put it "this is so comfy, I like it now".


I just recently got her into the Junie B. Jones books, she was never interested before even though she has pretty much the whole collection, but last week thursday I took one off the shelf and started reading it and laughing, not faked laughing because if you've read Junie B. Jones you KNOW that is hilarious. She came up to me and asked what I was doing and before long she had taken off with the book herself to read.....can't tell you how happy it made me :)

Here's the best part though, through the Junie B. Jones website I found a link to another one called Teachers@Random and what it is, is different activities and ideas to do with the kids in the classroom, now of course I'm NO teacher but I can still use these for Jasmine. They even have it set up by the different books, like for example, Jasmine is busy reading "Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus" so they have a page for it with different activities that go along with the book. I am so thrilled you can't even understand, I almost want to dress as a teacher and set up a classroom just so I can play "school" LOL

Of course I won't do that, but I will be working with her and doing the different activities, I think she'll enjoy it. But don't think it's just for Junie B. Jones, you can pick what grade you're looking for and what books you want to work with etc......seriously, take some time and browse through the site, it's fascinating.

Feeling - Inspired

Drinking - Viennese Coffee

Writing - Grocery lists and menus for the week to come

Thinking - that I need to get some crafting done

Contemplating - Sewing or knitting

Knowing - that I'll probably start the knitting before the sewing

Listening - to cartoons on the tv

Jumping - everytime one of the kids runs up to me and yells in my ears

Savoring - Audio book of Pride & Prejudice (via Librivox), can't tell you how happy I am to have found that website

Resisting - the temptation to have yet another slice of Pumpkin Gingerbread Cake

Eating - Nothing right now

Hiding - my fast break candy bar so the kids don't eat it

Feeling - impatient for the fall weather to finally arrive in Arizona

Cottages, Crafting and Cooking!

I was reading one of my favorite blogs and this amazing lady is not only one of the best crafters out there, she has an amazing house and lives in one of the most stunning places ever. Literally sounds like she has it all doesn't it???

Anyway, she posted this photo, the one on the left here, and said this was about 100 yards from her childhood home. Is that not the most peaceful and charming place you've ever seen???

I don't think I need to tell you how much I love English Cottages and how I wish I could live in one, maybe one day who knows?

Things here have been crazy busy and I'm trying to get it all done, I have a house desperately asking for attention, I have fabric begging to be made into beautiful projects and I have ingredients sitting on kitchen shelves asking to be made into delicious food. I really should start making a list of what I need to accomplish and then jump right in with both feet.....maybe that's what I'll do today?!?!?!

Yesterday afternoon I had a Parent/Teacher conference for Jasmine, she's doing great, the teacher loves her to death and we got to talk about the usual stuff parents talk about, are they good in class? Are they respectful of others? Is there anything I need to be working on her with? So I was happy to hear good things about Jasmine, we always knew she was a great student so it's good to have it reiterated by the teacher. She got two A's, one B and two C's.....we'll be working on those C's for sure LOL

I don't know about the rest of you out there but we're not the kind of parents to get upset or ground them or whatever when they don't get straight A's, to me what matters is that I'm seeing my child work hard and devote herself to her school work, if she is still getting C's then so be it, do I condone it though? No, and we've talked to her about it so she doesn't think that it's acceptable to not try and better herself but we've also made her realize that she must never hide or be scared of her grades......we're in this together, whatever her grades we'll all work at it as a family and I think for me that is what matters.

One of the big things with Jasmine is that she does not enjoy reading, she finds it boring, no matter what books we throw her way.........and it's funny because she's the 3rd top reader in her class......go figure.

Anyway, I realized that I need to turn reading into something that she will enjoy so she's now got a small area in her room that has become her reading area, just throw down a cute little quilt, a couple pillows and some books, she likes reading there and she likes it even better when the pugs join her and take a small nap at her feet. (btw, ignore the date on the picture, I just realized that I haven't reset my date on my camera in forever LOL)

After the conference we came home and the kids wanted to decorate their little pumpkins so that's what we did, there was paint and yarn and fabric and all sorts of goodies available but my children are painters.......they have blinders to everything else around LOL

So here's the masterpieces, they didn't want help with theirs and I love watching the kids just having fun and doing whatever their hearts desire.

Back in Idaho, I went to the base thrift store and came upon this beautiful fabric, I just fell in love with it, it was free, there were a couple yards on it and I just love the pattern, so I picked it up and it's been sitting in my crafts box for months now. I've decided to take it out and finally do something with it but I need your help, see I seem to have hit a blank when it comes to sewing, I look at it and I know it would look beautiful somewhere in my house, but where???? Curtains, pillows......what?????? Help please, I know there's tons of crafty ladies out there with great ideas so help a girl out will ya???

Right now I have a wonderful Beef Curry cooking away in the crockpot and it's a first for me because curry is one of those dishes that I make myself on the stove top, that's how I learnt from my greatgrandmother but you know the crockpot looks so inviting and I have so much to do around here that I want, no, I NEED this day to focus on the house instead of the kitchen.

I swear Curry has to be one of our favorite dishes in this house, we never get enough of it :)

I'm heading out to get started on the house but I wanted to leave you with this photo of Nicholas, while watching tv this morning I heard my name from the couch and turned to find him trying to hand me a rose.....ok so a plastic rose, but still it's the thought that counts right?

Slow Cooking Thursday

All my slow cooking recipes are now online and starting today, I will add all the recipes shared weekly to my online del.icio.us site too. So if you're wanting to find ALL the slow cooked recipes that have been shared since the first SLOW COOKING THURSDAY, here is the link for you.


Morning ladies, it's thursday and time for another Slow Cooking Thursday. I'm sporting a new SCT banner so go ahead and update your old ones when you get a chance.

Thank you again to all the participants, I've gotten such a wonderful collection of recipes already and can't wait to see more.

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

CUBE STEAKS WITH GRAVY

Credit: Taste of Home Slow Cooker Recipes

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

6 beef cube steaks

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 large onion, sliced and separated into rings

3 cups water, divided

1 envelope brown gravy mix

1 envelope mushroom gravy mix

1 envelope onion gravy mix

Hot mashed potatoes or cooked noodles

Place flour in a large resealable plastic bag. Add steaks, a few at a time, and shake until completely coated. In a skillet, cook steaks in oil until lightly browned on each side. Transfer to a slow cooker. Add the onion and 2 cups water. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until meat is tender.

In a bowl, whisk together gravy mixes with remaining water. Add to slow cooker, cook 30 minutes more. Serve over mashed potatoes or noodles.

Yield: 6 servings

And there I go again..............

I am pretty good about blogging but then there's times that a few days or a week will go by with no posts and that is usually when life comes at me full force, I'm caught between kids and hubby and housework and all that other fun stuff. Yes, it's fun for me, I've always wanted to be a mom and wife and have my own house so to me this is living my dream......only in my dream I had a bit more money, but that's neither here nor there LOL

So how was your weekend??? Mine was quiet and slow and not much got accomplished, we went out on Saturday to try and get the kids Halloween costumes, only to return home with nothing, zilch, nada. Either everyone around here is wearing more than one costume or the stores didn't have enough in stock. Of course I tried to coax Nicholas into being a Peanut or a Little Devil but he was not thrilled and specifically told me that he is to be a COWBOY, all other deals are OFF the table.

Jasmine is going as a Fairy and we've got her wings and her wand, we have her flower crown but no dress, yes my friends, she still doesn't have the most important part of the outfit. But, I'm not going to fret or get upset. I was going to order it online and then realized that I have but a week before Halloween and the only time to ensure that I get the costumes here on time is to pay a ludicrous amount for shipping.....no can do. I will just keep looking this week and we still have this coming weekend to find something.


I've finally finished my first book from the Fall Reading 2007 List and I loved it. It was "Moonlight on the Millpond" by Lori Wick. The first book in the Tucker Mills Trilogy and it did not disappoint, though I admit that when I started reading it I had just finished Lori Wick's other series "The English Garden Series" and this one seemed a bit slow in the beginning, but boy am I glad I hung in there.

In all of her books there seems to be a theme of "finding God and having faith" and to me there's nothing better than to go through the ups and downs and watch a character who is distant from the Lord, finally realize that they need Him in their lives and them make the necessary changes, I get almost giddy everytime one of these men or women reach that moment where they drop to their knees and welcome the Lord into their hearts......

I'm starting the second book in the series tonight and I can't wait!


I've just posted my Menu Plan for this week too, it's on my food blog as always. I ended up not making some of the meals last week and I've brought them over to this one.....I like having a menu that is but a mere draft or idea of what the meals should be, I don't necessarily like feeling like I HAVE to eat that certain dish that certain day.

So anyway, I am cutting this one short, I have to finish the laundry and then go pick Jasmine up from school. I hope you're all having a great monday!

God Bless

GO BOKKE!!!

Tomorrow is the day, the Rugby World Cup final being played in France.........South Africa vs England and of course I am pumped and I'm excited and I can't wait, I'm hoping our Bokke bring home the cup again, last time they did it was 1995.

I remember being in South Africa still and everyone was sooooo excited but now it's a completely different feeling, having family in Johannesburg means that I still know what is going on there.....I've been watching the SA news, blogs, facebook and myspace sites and the whole country is hyped and impatiently waiting for the final.

Today everyone in South Africa wore green and gold to match the Springboks (Bokke) colors, stores were sold out everywhere, the BBQ's have been planned, the food and drinks bought and now it's just a waiting game, until tomorrow night when our team goes up against England. I'm so thrilled I can't even contain my excitement and let me tell you it would have been easy to get depressed today, if you only knew what it's been like for me.

Anyway GO BOKKE DO WHAT YOU DO BEST AND BRING BACK THE CUP!


So my day has been awful, I feel like I have negativity just flying towards me and I'm standing here trying to dodge it all and not doing a great job of it.

It started last night with a sore throat and a headache which led to a congested nose and in turn led me to toss and turn all night and that led me (you see the pattern?) to pulling a muscle on the right side of my back which again........say it with me........led me to being in pain and not able to move very well.

I thought that was the worst of my problems and was prepared to have some coffee and take something for the pain, but right as I was standing at my kitchen window I looked out towards the driveway and my durango seemed to be tilting to the right. At first I thought it was my eyes, but then I see this:

And upon closer inspection I found the culprit

That just upset me, these are NEW tires, I just got them about 2 days before we moved to Arizona, so it's disappointing to see that.....but anyway, my awful day wasn't over, I set my coffee pot to go and walked to my computer so I could check email and blog.

I turned it on and it start loading windows and then gave me the "blue screen of death", shut down the computer and refused to work again, wouldn't load anything, it kept restarting and giving me all these errors.

Seriously, who is trying to annoy me today??? I've had to reinstall windows which meant I lost everything I had on there.....yeah it just gets better and better doesn't it??? LOL

So I've prayed and I've thanked the Lord for being with me and for helping me get through this today because after the computer first broke down I broke down along with it, had myself a little cry and then prayed for patience and I'm pushing and prodding through it....sick and in pain but just smiling through it, I don't know if it's nerves or what, but I'm at the point where thinking about my day sends me into giggles LOL

I wish I could stay longer, but I'm in the middle of fixing the computer and reinstalling everything I lost, which is always frustrating.

Hope you all have a wonderful friday, I'm going to have dinner and then settled down in bed to watch the Most Haunted Live in Winchester House.....7 hours.....wow. LOL

Slow Cooking Thursday!!!

All my slow cooking recipes are now online and starting today, I will add all the recipes shared weekly to my online del.icio.us site too. So if you're wanting to find ALL the slow cooked recipes that have been shared since the first SLOW COOKING THURSDAY, here is the link for you.


Morning ladies, it's thursday and time for another Slow Cooking Thursday. I'm sporting a new SCT banner so go ahead and update your old ones when you get a chance.

Thank you again to all the participants, I've gotten such a wonderful collection of recipes already and can't wait to see more.

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

I made this recipe for last night's dinner and it was REALLY REALLY good....the enchiladas came out so creamy and were just delicious.

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN ENCHILADA ROLL UPS

Credit: Howstuffworks

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 7 to 8 hours (LOW) • 3 to 4 hours (HIGH)
Yield: Makes 6 servings
Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chicken broth
1 small onion, diced
1/4 to 1/2 cup canned jalapeño peppers,* sliced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons whipping cream or milk
6 (7- to 8-inch) flour tortillas
6 thin slices American cheese or American cheese with jalapeño peppers


Preparation:
1.
Cut each chicken breast lengthwise into 2 or 3 strips. Combine 1/2 cup flour and salt in resealable food storage bag. Add chicken strips and shake to coat with flour mixture. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Brown chicken strips in batches 2 to 3 minutes per side. Place chicken into slow cooker.

2.
Add chicken broth to skillet and scrape up any browned bits. Pour broth mixture into slow cooker. Add onion, jalapeño peppers and oregano. Cover; cook on LOW 7 to 8 hours or on HIGH 3 to 4 hours.

3.
Blend remaining 2 tablespoons flour and cream in small bowl until smooth. Stir into chicken mixture. Cook, uncovered, on HIGH 15 minutes or until thickened. Spoon chicken mixture onto center of flour tortillas. Top with 1 cheese slice. Fold up tortillas and serve.


Serving Suggestion: This rich creamy chicken mixture can also be served over hot cooked rice.

What a crazy few days I've had!

You ever have those weeks that fly by and you don't even realize it??? I finally got a moment to post this morning and I notice that my last post was on Saturday....wow!!!

Anyway, the kids and I have been fighting a cold and Jasmine was home sick from school yesterday. Isn't it amazing how kids have a fever and are not feeling that great but seem to be well enough to bicker and fight with their siblings??? They were both going at it yesterday, I caught myself yelling like a bainshee at one point and then had to remind myself that:

A - It's not right
B - Doesn't even phase them
C - It does not stop the fighting
D - Only thing I get out of it is irritation and a sore throat

Just can't win.


Anyway, before I carry on I want to tell you about Ladybugs and Lilipads, it's this wonderful blog by Sara and they sell the cutest baby outfits and accessories ever.

She's one of my readers and she loved the Fairy House post so she decided to be sweet enough and give my blog friends a discount on their Fairy Pillows. All you need to do is head to her store here, enter the Coupon Code FAIRY and receive 10% discount off any tooth fairy pillow purchases between today and Dec 31. These make wonderful Christmas presents. They also offer FREE shipping for all orders $99 and up.

Here's a few photos of some of the pillows: (You'll have to be patient today, seems that Blogger is PMSing again so I'm having trouble posting pictures)

Aren't those just the cutest Fairy Pillows????

I have the worst headache today and I think it's because I'm not feeling great and not getting sleep either. I can't for the life of me keep Nicholas out of our bed, there's days that he will stay in his room all night but those are so few and far in between that it's seriously affecting my sleep. I need help and I need ideas......how do you keep a 4 year old in his room all night long???

I've even tried the Super Nanny technique and it does NOT work for us, he keeps saying he doesn't like being alone and is scared.....I've pretty much exhausted all my ideas and thoughts, so now I turn to you, all the mothers out there, to give me some tips and tricks.



I got Jasmine off to school and now I'm going to try and lay down for a bit with Nicholas, he's not feeling that great either so we may actually be able to sneak in a good nap.

My slow cooker will be fixing dinner tonight, it's one of the reason why I love using it, days that I'm not well or tired or busy are just so much easier to do deal with when you have the food cooking away for you.

Dinner is Chicken Enchilada Roll-Ups, it's a new recipe so we'll see how it turns out.

Hope you all have a wonderful wednesday, I won't get around to visit any blogs today, maybe tomorrow :)

God Bless,

Apple Fritters and Ants!!!!

My life seems to revolve around alphabet letters lately, it's actually quite amusing to realize that most of the things I do in one day start with the same letter......weird or freaky???

It's a slow saturday for me, one of those just spent laying around and doing pretty much nothing, not that I need to do anything because for once I can say "my house is spotless and I have no Mt. laundry threatening to take over the house". Right now the kids are eating their lunch, good ol' Ramen Noodles.....I don't know why some people turn their noses down at these, I for one think they're cheap inexpensive and the kids love them......well I do too, but that's besides the point.


Anyway, they're eating their lunch and I'm standing to the side like a Terminator on the lookout for ants (see that happy one above, that's what I think they do to me every morning LOL). I have NEVER in my life seen such an invasion of ants like we have seen since moving to Arizona. I wake up every morning to hundreds of them on my kitchen floor, God Forbid you leave one measly crumb and they're like vultures all over it. I need your help fellow blog friends and ant hunters...........how do I get rid of these??? I don't want to use anything on the floor that the pugs can ingest or even the kids can get to but I also can't keep going this way. So Please, I implore you, leave me your ideas and advice or whatever you think will help me get rid of them.

The other A going on today is Apple Fritters, I first saw this recipe at Kelli's blog and decided to give it a go. So I got out the recipe and started it only to realize that I had forgotten to read the recipe ahead of time, sooooooooooo I didn't realize that the batter needs to be refrigerated for about two hours.

There I was, knife in hand and my pretty apples chopped all up, now you know if you just leave them out they turn brown and yucky....what to do what to do....well I did the only thing I could, the kids and I ate them


Through the magic of blogging, you won't have to sit through 2 hours of waiting, you get to enjoy them straight away. Help yourself to some and if you want to try them, I posted the recipe on my food blog here, or you could go to the original recipe from Tina here.


Yesterday I went to get my mail and had a box waiting for me from the wonderful lady Elizabeth, she knows how much I love books AND cooking AND slow cooking, so I opened it up to this beauty......I'm sure you heard me all across the country for I was jumping up and down and screeching my heart out. LOL




She's a wonderful lady and right now she needs your prayers for her and her family after her son received news that his best friend had been killed over in Iraq. Please go on over and show some support for her family and also the soldier's family left behind.

Dinner tonight is Sirloin Cheese Burgers on the grill and I have these wonderful potatoes cooking away in my crockpot, all I did was wash some potatoes, prick them with a fork and then rub them with butter or margarine, sprinkle some garlic powder and thyme over them and set it on high for 4 hours. They smell DIVINE!

Of course for dessert we have the scrumptious apple fritters, Yummy!

Tomorrow will be Slow Cooked Smothered Steaks with Garlic Mashed potatoes and some veggies. I have a couple of errands to run so this will be perfect, it can cook while I am out.....actually I'm heading to Michaels but shhhhh don't tell anyone. LOL

Hubby is going with me so that I behave myself, because if I'm there alone I will most certainly walk out with way more than I can handle and way more than my bank account is willing to spend.

I'm getting a really bad headache so I think it's time to step away from the computer and maybe catch up on a little bit of reading or even a little nap if the kids are willing to lay with me....doubtful but I'll try my luck.

Hope you all have a wonderful saturday.

God Bless,

Slow Cooking Thursday!!!

All my slow cooking recipes are now online and starting today, I will add all the recipes shared weekly to my online del.icio.us site too. So if you're wanting to find ALL the slow cooked recipes that have been shared since the first SLOW COOKING THURSDAY, here is the link for you.


Morning ladies, it's thursday and time for another Slow Cooking Thursday. I'm sporting a new SCT banner so go ahead and update your old ones when you get a chance.

Thank you again to all the participants, I've gotten such a wonderful collection of recipes already and can't wait to see more.

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

Last week was all about slow cooking and boy was it good..........I think I'll have another slow cooking week themed menu coming up soon.

For dinner tonight I'm having Slow Cooked Smothered Steaks and Mashed potatoes, it's one of those tried and true family favorites :)

Here's today's recipes:

GREEK CHICKEN PITAS

1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 t. lemon-pepper seasoning
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. allspice
1/4 c. plain yogurt
1/4 c. sour cream
1/2 c. cucumber, peeled and diced
4 rounds pita bread, halved and split

Place onion and garlic in a slow cooker; set aside. Sprinkle chicken with seasonings; place in slow cooker. Cover and cook on high setting for 6 hours. Stir together yogurt, sour cream and cucumber in a small bowl; chill. Fill pita halves with chicken and drizzle with yogurt sauce.
Makes 4 sandwiches.

SPICED CHOCOLATE COFFEE

8 c. brewed coffee
1/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. chocolate syrup
4 4-inch cinnamon sticks
1-1/2 t. whole cloves

Combine first 3 ingredients in a slow cooker; set aside. Wrap spices in a coffee filter and tie with kitchen string; add to slow cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 2 to 3 hours. Remove and discard spices. Ladle coffee into mugs. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

What Fairy Tales are made of!!!

Soft moss a downy pillow makes, and green leaves spread a tent, Where Faerie fold may rest and sleep until their night is spent. The bluebird sings a lullaby, the firefly gives a light, The twinkling stars are candles bright, Sleep, Faeries all, Good Night. ~Elizabeth T. Dillingham, "A Faery Song"

Yesterday we finally got down to making the Fairy Houses, I haven't seen the kids this excited since Christmas morning.

We stepped out into the back yard and started collecting what we needed, branches and rocks and twigs and leaves and whatnot. Amongst the cries of "Oh look mommy" I heard squeals and laughter and little mouthes talking a mile a minute, bubbling with excitement and eager to make their own Fairy Houses.


They picked the spot in the yard that they wanted to use, both were against the wall right beneath their bedroom windows, and they set to work. I helped Nicholas with his but Jasmine did hers all on her own.



I honestly had no idea that the Fairy Houses would be such a HUGE hit, watching them build them and talk about Fairies and nature, asking questions and using their imagination and not to mention being outside in the fresh air. It was just wonderful and it did my soul good, I tell you!!!

Once they had the main part of the house structure done they both ran inside to find furniture and decorations to use. They came out with fake flowers, beads and tiny little furniture.

Nicholas Fairy House

Jasmine's Fairy House

Aren't they just the cutest things?? You won't believe how into them I got too, it was like taking a trip back in time to my childhood, I felt like a kid again and I enjoyed myself which made me realize that we tend to forget what it's like to throw caution to the wind and just have fun.

It's definitely taught me to allow myself to be a kid at times and do things that normally adults wouldn't do.

Alright well here are the kids finishing up their houses.



And here are the final houses, look how proud they are of their accomplisments LOL
I love their little faces :)


I'm telling you, if you want a fun project to do with your kids and not have to spend money or gas to get there, this is IT. It's the topic of conversation in our house since yesterday, Jasmine even asked me to leave her bedroom window open a bit so she could keep an ear out for fairies that may come and see the houses.

I've added more of the pics to my Flickr Account, so if you want to see them just head on over there.

Since the kids are into Fairies right now, they're devouring anything to do with it, books and movies etc. So we have lots of Fairy themed things going on here at the house, I'll share the links with you all in case anyone else is interested.

I'll be making some of the Fairy Dolls for Jasmine, she's going to freak out when she sees them LOL


Fairies World - Images, coloring pages, poems, books etc.

Fairy Fantasy Party - Great ideas, games and activities, themed fairy food etc

Fairy Ribbon Doll

Calista Fairy Doll

Tooth Fairy Pillow

Easy Fairy Costume for Halloween

Time to relax!!!

After a crazy weekend of running around and cleaning and unpacking the last little bits of stuff, I'm done, at least for today.

I plan on putting everything off until tomorrow, the kids have today off school too so I don't need to be running around which means I get to do whatever I wish...........catching up on all the blogs, catching up on my reading, playing some games on the computer, building that fairy house which has yet to be done, eating, monkeying around with the kids and just throwing all worries and caution to the wind. I think I deserve a day like that!!!


We had a wonderful day yesterday, Curt's Uncle Dave and Aunt Jean are vacationing about 2 hours from us and drove out to spend the day. We had such a great time, we didn't do anything extravagant but there's no need because for us the best part of this is sitting down and chatting and catching up, playing card games and laughing with the kids. They'll be by to see us again on friday before flying back to North Carolina early saturday morning.......it will be sad to see them go but we treasure all the time we spend together.

Here they are playing a game of "Back Alley Bridge", it's one of those family card games that has to be played whenever they get together.



My kids are growing and with that comes all the funny and not so funny remarks and comments.

Nicholas is 4 years old and just drives us insane at times, he's very independent and assertive and wants things done his way. I could almost see a tattoo engraved on his forehead "it's my way or the highway". But beyond all that he is just as sweet as can be and says the funniest things.

This weekend Curt went out and surprised them both with some new toys, they each got a new pokemon, and I kid you not, these toys are tiny but cost $20 EACH. Yes I actually want to heave when I say that.....but anyway, he also got them some toys from Ben 10.
While attempting to open the toys and set them up, you know we have the box with the gazillion tie things and then because apparently that wasn't annoying enough for parents and frustrating enough for kids, they decided to go a step further and actually add SCREWS..........seriously, if you're a toy wrapper/packer whatever, could you give a parent a break?!?!?!?

But going back to the story, Curt pulled out the toy and the little paper booklet thingy fell to the ground, Nicholas reached down, picked it up and happily announced to the room "Hey my toy makes underwear" LOL
This is what he saw and I have to tell you, it really does remind me of underwear LOL

I don't think I've laughed so hard, the look on his face was one of amazement and confusion, I mean a toy that makes underwear is kinda neat but also unnecessary right??? LOL

Jasmine on the other hand is growing up, 8 going on 18 years old and we're already seeing the beginning of the teenage phase, it seems nowadays they become older younger.....if that even makes sense to you.

So she's been begging us for a cellphone and quite frankly we don't even have one ourselves. Other than for emergencies, I see absolutely NO need for cellphones, it's just my personal opinion obviously.........so when we told her that there's no way she's getting one, at least not right now because she's EIGHT.YEARS.OLD........her reply was calm, collected and unexpected "You guys are SO old fashioned". LOL

I had flashbacks of myself saying pretty much the same thing to my parents and though at the time I thought I was all that and a bag of chips, now I'm not finding it very funny. Guess what goes around comes around right???

And life goes on, everyday learning something new but hey, if others can do it so can we........or as Nicholas likes to say now "It's a doozie" LOL

My Saturday in S's!!!

Image copyright: P. Buckley Moss

There's soup, there' sickies and there's scenery.....yep, all rolled into one.

I'm feeling like I was handed a cold but told to hold off on it as long as I possibly can....I have the sniffles and the headache, the congested nose and the ill feeling, but no cold in sight, YET and I used that term lightly because usually it means within the next day it's slamming into me at full speed and knocking me onto my tush.

While it's not here I just continue on my way, it's almost like I'm packing for a vacation, running around and getting as much done as possible so that I'm ready to go, only this time the furthest I will be headed to is the bed if it really gets that bad LOL

As promised yesterday afternoon, after getting the house in order, we set out to the Historic Sahuaro Ranch. Imagine if you please driving in the city and then pulling into this park, you're driving through these beautiful huge black iron gates and suddenly surrounded by palm trees, a rose garden and a beautiful ranch house built in the 1890's.

We set off walking around the grounds which is littered with chickens, rabbits and peacocks, oh and we can't forget the pigeons that coo and rest upon the rooftops.

I'm only going to share a few pictures with you, the others you will have to go check out at my Flickr account, just follow this link Historic Sahuaro Ranch, I didn't want to overwhelm blogger, we all know how antsy it can get at times.

If you're interested in the history of the ranch, you can go here and read all about it, it's very interesting.

The main house

The Foreman's House

The kids outside the packing house

A view of the rose gardens

Beautiful roses

It was such a great day, the outing concluded with a tour of the Main House, for free, we got to go inside and take pictures and learn more about the history of the ranch and the family that lived there, in the main bedroom they still have the original sleigh bed that belonged to the family. A great afternoon, a learning experience and a promise to return to the ranch for a picnic.

Just before we left we noticed this hen digging a hole in the dirt, it was the funniest thing ever and for us, a first! I didn't know that chickens kicked away at the dirt like that. LOL

How funny is that?!?!?!


We've spent the day cleaning and redoing the house, we still had a box of pictures to hang up and some other odds and ends needing attention, so today was the day. I love looking around and feeling like I've accomplished something, every nook and cranny has a homely touch and it warms my heart, I think I'm finally seeing a HOME where just a HOUSE used to be.

We have a breakfast nook and I HATED the way the back of the benches looked, they were unfinished and didn't look good at all, so I got out some of my fabric and attached some panels to the back. Not only does it look much better but I now can use the space underneath for extra storage and no one will even notice.

Now this area was an empty wall that had some boxes still to be unpacked, we cleared them out I moved my little bench there, added a bookshelf and a plant, some pictures above and I have myself a cute little reading nook. I just love this little corner.

And the family pictures are finally up on the wall, well at least what you can see of them, there's more just around the corner.

So as you can see we were quite busy, while all this was going on I had a wonderful Split Pea Soup cooking away in the crockpot, I've shared the recipe over at my food blog if anyone is interested in trying.


We have family coming over to spend the day with us tomorrow so we're thrilled but it also means I need to get going, have some things to finish up and kids to bathe and read to.

I hope you're all enjoying your long weekend and having fun with the family.

God Bless,

Cooking, Cleaning and Hopefully Crafting!

Image credit: www.walkcarmarthenshire.com

Good morning everyone, come on in and sit with me, I have hot coffee and warm gooey cinnamon rolls waiting for you.

What a week it has been, I'm so glad it's the weekend and a long one at that, I'm hoping to get some good rest and catch up on my reading too.

It feels great to know that Autumn is here and even though I am in hot Arizona, the weather has cooled down and is allowing a wonderful breeze to come through, the weather man is talking about a cold front coming in, but how cold could it really get here?!?!?!? If I was still in Idaho I would be pulling out blankies and sweaters and gearing up for a COLD COLD front....but here I can't really take it seriously because nothing thrown our way will be as cold as before. LOL


This past week my whole menu revolved around Slow Cooking and trying new recipes and I have to say, I'm pretty happy with every single one we tried, they were delicious. Italian Sausage Penne, Hearty Chick 'n Dumplings, Cantonene Dinner, Swiss Steak......all wonderful but if I had to say which one to try first, I would say the Cantonese Dinner, oh it was just so good I can't wait to have it again.


Today I'm giving my Slow Cooker a chance to rest and recharge, we're either having Sirloin Bacon Burgers on the grill or probably grabbing something while out. We'll see what the mood strikes.

The kids and I are also going to be baking some Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins, does that not sound like heaven???


Curt's aunt and uncle are vacationing in the area, actually about 2 hours from us so we're trying to come up with a plan to meet and spend some time together, either they will come and see us on base or we will head to the ranch they're at to spend the day. Whichever one we decide on, we're super excited for.

Today though we're cleaning up around the house a bit and then heading to the Historic Sahuaro Ranch which is but a few minutes from our house.

Return to an earlier time when you visit this lovely historic park built in the 1890s. Seven original buildings set on 16 acres are home to rabbits, chickens and peacocks. Originally a citrus farm founded by William Henry Bartlett, the ranch is now a Glendale City Park. Tour the main house and view exhibits of years past.

There's a playground for the kids to play at, there's a picnic area and volleyball courts and then there's the historic part with the buildings where tours are available to take you inside the houses. Something fun to do and we don't even have to spend money....now that is my kind of family outing LOL

Now onto crafting, with the cooler temperatures coming around I usually pull out my knitting needles and start making something, not sure yet what will come of it, we'll see what I am in the mood for.


This long weekend the kids and I are also going to make our very own Fairy House in the backyard. Jasmine and I LOVE fairies and when I first heard about the Fairy House Series, I knew it would be something we both would enjoy....then I started looking online and found out that all over the country there seem to be a lot of little girls (and adults alike) who love making fairy houses even seasonal ones, in the woods, in their backyards, at the beach, pretty much anywhere.

I'll be sure to take a picture of our very own first Fairy House once it's complete.


For now I'm heading out, I want to get things straightened out here at home so we can head to the Sahuaro Ranch, I'll be back with pictures and stories I'm sure.

I leave you with my favorite song from Casting Crowns "Who I Am"......nothing like this song to remind us of who and what the Lord is to us. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL song!

song codes watch films

Holiday Cooking Blogger Style!

Well it's that time of year again and I'm so thrilled that the wonderful lady at "Overwhelmed with Joy" is hosting this again.

Last year I shared a couple of recipes from my Portuguese Culture, they were some of the most common Holiday meals served during Christmas.

We don't have Thanksgiving in Portugal so Christmas is pretty much the biggest family get together, there's tons of food everywhere and family and huge christmas trees surrounded by an ocean of gifts. Yes, when you have a huge family it literally takes over the living room, but it's so much fun.

So I'm sharing a few more recipes with you AND giving you the link to my Holiday Cooking Blogger Style First Edition last year in case you missed it and want the recipes that were shared there.

Rabanadas - Portuguese Christmas "French Toast"

* 1 baguette loaf of bread
* 1 egg
* 200 ml (3/4 cup) milk
* Olive oil
* Sugar and cinnamon

Cut a baguette into 1 cm (1/2") thick rounds; remove the crusts; dip into an egg beaten with milk - 1 egg to approximately 200 ml (3/4 c.) milk.
Fry in hot olive oil in a skillet for a few seconds on each side drain; sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.

The next recipe is one that we had many times for Christmas Eve, it's like a bread but stuffed with ham and bacon or sometimes even Chourico........it's SO good.

Bola de Carne - Meat Bread

Ingredients
6 eggs beaten
½ glass of vegetebale oil
pinch of salt
1 lb of flour
2 package of dry east ( Dissolved in warm water)
1 “chourico” (chourizo from Spain or Italy can serve the propose) sliced
¼ of smoked ham cut in pieces


Beat the egg together with the yeast and oil. Mix with the flour and salt.
Knead and place in a greased bowl to rise. This makes a moist sticky dough.
Put in a greased bowl turn to coat and cover. Let it rise to double, about 2 hours.
Traditionally the meat is spread in a single layer in the middle of the loaf. I prefer to mix it throughout the loaf .
Prepare you bread pans and divide the dough in two pieces.
Mix the meats in the dough and place in the loaf pans to rise a second time.
Let rises for about 1/2 hour and then bake in a preheated 450 deg. Oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

And lastly here is a soup that I think every portuguese person knows.......it's sooooo good and I remember eating it many times during the holidays. My greatgrandmother used to make it and it was to die for.......rich and filling and just wonderful.

CALDO VERDE - PORTUGUESE KALE SOUP

Serves 4

½ lb of shredded kale
1 lb of potatoes
1 small chourico sliced (a good hard smoky sausage can be used
even pepperoni in a pinch)
1 or 2 cloves of garlic
4 tablespoons olive oil
pinch of salt

Peel the potatoes and heat in a quart of water with the garlic and chourico. When the potatoes are well cooked make a puree and continue to heat. Meanwhile wash the shredded kale and add to the puree and boil. Add half the olive oil and cook the kale. When ready to serve season to taste. Add the remaining olive oil (use as much as you like) and serve with the bread.

Slow Cooking Thursday!!!

Before I start I want to tell you about something going on in Blogland, for those of you who have been around for a while you may remember the wonderful lady at "Overwhelmed with Joy" hosting the Holiday Cooking Blogger Style last year.

Well she's doing it again and I'm definitely going to be participating, I shared some of my family's favorite Holiday recipes last year and can't wait to share more. So if this is something you're interested in doing, just go on over and read the rules and explanation.


Morning ladies, it's thursday and time for another Slow Cooking Thursday. I'm sporting a new SCT banner so go ahead and update your old ones when you get a chance.

Thank you again to all the participants, I've gotten such a wonderful collection of recipes already and can't wait to see more.

Don't forget to add your name to Mr Linky and a link back to your SCT post so others can come by and see your recipe too.

I tried 2 new slow cooker recipes this week and they were pretty good....Swiss Steak and Italian Sausage Penne. Also a thumbs up to Cheri for her Slow Cooked Caramel Apples, the kids LOVED them.

Here's the one for today:

NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER

Virginia Watson, Scranton, PA

1/2 c. butter, melted
2 T. onion powder
2 t. dried thyme
2 stalks celery, chopped
46-oz. can clam juice
2 cubes chicken bouillon
2 bay leave
3 16-oz. cans whole potatoes, drained and diced
3 10-oz. cans whole baby clams
2 c. light cream
2 c. milk
salt and pepper to taste

In a slow cooker, stir together butter, onion powder, thyme and celery; cook on high setting for 30 minutes. Add clam juice, bouillon, bay leaves and potatoes. Cover and continue cooking on high setting for 2 hours. Add clams and their juice; turn setting to low and cook for an additional 2 hours. Stir in cream and milk; cook for an additional one hour, or until heated through. Before serving, discard bay leaves; add salt and pepper to taste. Makes 6 servings.

Arrange seashels and beach glass from your last vacation on a cake stand. Tuck in some tea lights too....a sweet reminder of happy family times!

Fall Sickies!!!

It's that time of year again, but then when we're talking about ME in particular, any time of the year is cold and flu season. I must have the cruddiest immune system on earth.

Anyway, there's a lot of colds going around and I seem to be getting one, my head and throat hurt, I feel congested and a little feverish, I really just want to crawl into bed with my warm covers and a good book in hand........just hide in there for a day or two and then emerge a whole new person. That's not going to happen though, so I'm keeping my hot honey and lemon tea close by and some cold medicine to go along.

Thank you all for the comments on my new blog look, I'm so glad you all like it, I'm just loving it, I could stare at it for hours and imagine myself away in that cabin, with no worries, no tv or radio or anything to bother me......a board game or two, some playing cards, some books, a warm fire and some homemade gingersnap cookies.....the hubby and kids and that's it. Doesn't that sound perfect???



A couple of you asked how I make the templates so fast and if it's a free one etc.........what I do is, I have a template that I use and all I change in it are the colors, the background graphics and the header. That's pretty much all I do when I want to make a new one. No one taught me how to do it, I just copied my current one and saved it to a text file so it would be safe, then I went in and messed around with it to see the changes happening, that's the best advice I can give you......unless of course you want to pay someone to make you a template, but I can't afford or excuse an expense of $50 or more just for a blog template..........my husband wouldn't be very thrilled. LOL

So go for it, just mess around and see what happens, it's actually so easy once you get the hang of it. Oh and a few of you asked what program I used for my banners, I use Paintshop Pro 9.


Last night's dinner turned out really good, the Slow Cooker Swiss Steak was wonderful, I made some Buttery Mashed Potatoes to go with it and called it good. Since I'm sticking with the Slow Cooking themed week, right now I have Italian Sausage and Penne in my crockpot, it smells so good.....and here soon when I return from picking up Jasmine at school, I'm going to get my other crockpot going with Cheri's Slow Cooked Caramel Apples.......yep, it just screams autumn to me :)



I watched Dancing with the Stars last night and I have to say, no offense to Wayne Newton and all his fans but seriously, why is he still there???? I get really frustrated watching these so called reality shows where America gets to decide the best singer or dancer when in fact it's nothing but a popularity contest. It's ridiculous.

Albert Reed was not one of the best dancers, but between him and Wayne Newton there's absolutely no doubt that he can dance. Don't get me wrong, I love Wayne, I think he's a great showman and an American Icon but this is a dancing competition people......just saying!!!

Tonight I have Private Practice and Ghost Hunters to watch, I can't wait.....just hope all this cold medicine doesn't knock me out before I watch the shows...maybe I should just record them on my computer in case I do fall asleep. LOL

Curt is dead tired today, he had just gone to bed at 10 pm last night when the phone rang at 2am from work telling him he needed to go back in because one of the jets was broken. Yes, it's the good ol' military way and I have to say that when we first got married it bothered me....I felt like my whole life was put on hold the minute that phone rang and at times I resented it.

I don't know if I just got used to it or accepted it, but it doesn't bother me anymore, it's just what it is. It's the ins and outs of being a military family, the constant plans down the drain because something happens at work that needs their immediate attention.......the missed Christmas or Thanksgiving because they're deployed........the long exhausting hours and the miserable exercises that last weeks and have the guys running around like chickens without heads. It's all hard and it's tough to get through but when you've been a military spouse for 10 years, it's just a part of life.

Sometimes I wonder how we will survive once he retires in four years...yes FOUR years and he is retiring. It's exciting and scary all at the same time....we're so used to the military way of life that it will be hard adjusting to civilian life. If I think I hold onto the Lord's hand tight enough now, wait until we're out LOL You ain't seen nothing yet!!! LOL

Anyway, it's almost dinner time, my Italian Sausage sauce is almost done so I need to get the Penne cooked real quick and set the table. Here's what is still on my to do list for today:

1. Do dinner dishes and clean kitchen
2. Put away 2 loads of laundry
3. Help Jasmine with homework
4. Bath time for kids
5. Books, Bible and nighttime prayer with kids
6. Pay bills
7. Finish my book for the Fall Reading

I keep looking at it and hoping it would all just go away if I snapped my fingers, but it's not going to happen, so I better get to it.

Oh btw, I don't know if you noticed, but on my sidebar I've added a little Autumn Fun, I'll have a new tip everyday through the month of October, so be sure to check it out if you are looking for ideas :)


Before I forget, the wonderful lady over at "Overwhelmed with Joy" is hosting a great contest called Pay it Forward. I encourage you to go on over and read her post, she's giving away 2 wonderful books and then if you win them all you have to do is read them and then "pay them foward" to someone else. Simple right and who doesn't love winning books???


God Bless,

I think Autumn deserves a new look!!!

I know you're probably laughing, I tend to change my template a lot around here, I think having the advantage of knowing how to do it tends to make me mess with it whenever the mood strikes me.

I do like this one for Fall, the colors, the changing leaves, the pumpkins, just makes me want to grab the family and head for the nearest Pumpkin patch. I remember when we went last year, still back in Idaho, what a blast we had.

With it also comes the eagerness to craft my little butt off, I have so many ideas for decorations and Halloween, let's not forget that we're also but a mere less than 3 months away from Christmas........boy time really has flown by.
Whatever I DO decide to make, I'll be sure to take pictures to share with you all.


So last night we headed to Cracker Barrel for dinner, it's one of our favorites restaurants, it's cheap and the food is amazing. I had the Country Fried Steak, Curt had the Roast Beef dinner, Jasmine had pancakes (don't ask LOL) and Nicholas had the Macaroni and Cheese. It was great but of course we can't ever just walk out, seriously, I think they need to offer blinders there so that you can make it from the table to your car without stopping to oooohhhhh and aaaahhhhhh at all the goodies in the store.

The kids got a few little toys, we picked up some old fashioned bottle root beer and then I got 3 new Gooseberry Patch cookbooks and I'm in LOVE with them.....I haven't even made it through my first one "Autumn in the Country", there's so many good recipes, tips and ideas etc....I'm in heaven!


Then I also picked up "From Grandma's Kitchen" and "Come on Over"......yep HEAVEN I TELL YOU!!!!
Gooseberry Patch has become my favorite store, I could do some major damage there LOL

How beautiful is this Crocheted Throw??? Oh if only I could crochet. My poor grandma tried so hard to teach me but I just could never get it, now knitting, I'm good at, sewing great too, cooking just love, but crochet?!?!?!? I just don't get it, I end up making this huge link chain LOL
That's all that comes out of my projects, just a link chain....I might be able to turn it into a necklace I guess.....


I worked a little too hard this weekend, was cleaning and cleaning and ended up pulling a muscle on my back, so I've been kinda slow and putting off anything that requires moving too much which pretty much rules out ANYTHING LOL
It's frustrating, I see the laundry piling up and the floors needing to be sweeped again, thanks to my shedding pugs, and I can't do it.....oh well, there's always tomorrow right???

Anyway, I need to get going, I have the best smell permeating the air.......Swiss Steak cooking away in my crockpot, I can't wait for dinner and it's not even noon. Better go find something to eat right now.

October here we come!!!

Where has this year gone???? I ask because I swear I was just in the middle of March and now it's October and I don't even feel like I got much accomplished at all. But that's life, you either strap on and go along or let it pass you by.

I realize I haven't posted since friday, I've been so busy the past few days and not feeling all that great either, all this Jasmine school thing really got me stressed out and I developed a tension headache that made me want to slam my head against a hard wall, repeatedly. I don't know how that would have fixed anything other than make it get worse, but whatever, that's how annoying it was.

Thank you all for the great comments, tips, stories and advice you shared. She went back to school today and I've been on pins and needles all day long, looking at the clock and wondering how she was doing and how she was feeling. She came out of school with a big smile on her face.

The Vice Principal sat down with both her and the girl and talked about what had happened, the girl obviously tried to deny saying anything but Jasmine stood her ground and said that she did say it. The Vice Principal believed her and told the other girl that this is a very serious thing, you don't go around threatening other people, it's completely unacceptable and is cause for serious punishment. The girl then apologized and said she won't do it again..........apparently she told Jasmine she was sorry she said it, Jasmine said, in her own words "I don't deserve to be treated that way and you hurt my feelings.....but I accept your apology". Now they're friends!!!!!!

I have to tell you it's a weird feeling, on the one hand I'm super happy and relieved that this has been stopped and the girl now understands the severity of acting this way, I'm also happy that she was the one that apologized and then asked Jasmine to play with her and Jasmine's best friend......but on the other hand I'm a little iffy. Seriously, this thing of being a parent is a work in process, just when I think I have it down something else comes along that I've never dealt with and then I have to try and keep up with all the feelings that arise. Oh well, at least no one can say that parenting is boring.

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I posted my Menu over on my food blog, this week it's all about Slow Cooking. The weather is getting cooler, it's actually been cloudy and breezy and I find myself craving stews and soups and Autumny (yes I know that word doesn't exist lol) foods.
So I'm trying a bunch of new recipes from the Gooseberry Patch Slow Cooking Cookbook, I'll let you know what I think.

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Last week wednesday I had the best surprise ever, I was online and had my MSN Messenger running which I tend to do so that I can chat with my family in South Africa......then I see a message pop up "Hi cousin". I literally felt as if I had the wind knocked out of me, it was my cousin Patricia all the way in Portugal. She is my dear Uncle Carlos' daughter and we hadn't talked since 1994, at least. It's been SO long and it was great catching up.....last time we were together we were teenagers on vacation in Malaga, Spain. It was funny and kinda weird talking about kids and husbands and life in general....in our eyes we will always be little kids right???
Anyway, Patricia, if you're reading this "beijocas grandes querida prima, as saudades sao imensas".

It's also fun chatting with my older brother Paul, he tends to send me messages whenever he's getting take out LOL
Then we play the "guess where I'm at" game, where he tells me the slogan of the place and I try to guess.......it's great because it's all places where I grew up and I still remember them, but obviously it also brings homesickness and an overwhelming feeling of wanting to be there.

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On to book business, I just realized that on my Fall Reading list I have a library book and instead of doing the smart thing, reading THAT one first so that I can return it, I started with one of mine. I'm glad I'm one of those people that can have 2 or 3 books going at once and not get them confused.......you may be laughing but I'm serious, at times I have a book in the bedroom, one in the kitchen and one in the computer area. But anyway, I decided that I need to start on the "My heart may be broken but my heart still looks good" by Dixie Cash.....it has to be returned soon.

In the meantime I'm down to my last pages of "Moonlight on the Millpond" by Lori Wick and I'm loving every minute, it's just one of those good christian sweet stories that leave you with a smile on your face.

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I'm going to try to make it by your blogs tonight, at least a few at a time. We're heading to dinner and then Dancing with the Stars comes on.

Speaking of tv, did you all see Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters last night??? Both were so good and both left me in tears. It's funny whenever I watch Brothers and Sisters I also have to laugh because it reminds me so much of my family, the chaos and tons of people at times, the bickering and the fighting and the sarcasm but with it all also comes the immense amount of love and closeness and doing ANYTHING for that person. Love it!!!

Alright I realize I hadn't blogged in a few days but I have babbled on for so long today I'm afraid some of my blog readers may be passed out of boredom right now....I apologize, maybe from now on I'll start serving you coffee and treats to keep you entertained.

Hope you're all having a wonderful Monday, have a great rest of day and God Bless you all,
I leave you with this wonderful song by Casting Crowns "Who am I".