{ Blog 365 #70 - My sweet boy Elliott }

 

{ Let's catch up }

Good morning ladies! 

 

It's been a while.  Couple of weeks at least, since I've sat down and just talked, shared, updated and had a cup of coffee with you all.

 

I have another busy day today, but I felt so pushed to come in and just share.  Share the photos I've been taking, because even though I haven't been posting them, they've been accumulating in my camera, and so this weekend, I did a photo dump, edited everything I had, uploaded it to my Flickr Account and cleaned out the card to start again.

 

So let's start, grab a cup of coffee or tea, sit back and let me just chit chat for a few minutes.....hopefully, though if you know me you know that sometimes I just start talking and keep going.  *snicker*

♥ Deer ♥

I love this time of the year. The weather gets cooler, the leaves start turning and our property gets an influx of deer.  Big bucks, does and fawns, all colors and sizes.  It is fascinating and I always thank God for his works of art.  The beauty of this animals is just unlike anything else.  

 

 

♥ Cleaning and organizing ♥

In between my errands, chauffeur mom duties, cooking, etc.  I have been slowly organizing and cleaning out a room at a time.

 

I keep my house clean and tidy, but we all know that things tend to pile up, it's just normal for a day to day household, and we as moms are always going around trying to get things back where they belong.  But even as moms we tend to sometimes leave a pile of laundry on the couch for a day, or a stack of books in a corner of the room waiting to be put on the shelf.  

 

It's those little things that have been bothering me, so I have been making it a priority to pick up, organize and put away all the random bits and bobs around the house. 

 

♥ Preparing for the holidays ♥

I've started making plans for Thanksgiving, planning, buying food for the meals, working on Christmas gift lists and getting ready for the holidays.

I can not wait to celebrate, especially this year.  We have so much to be thankful for, even in the middle of the uncertainty and chaotic world we live in.  This Thanksgiving we will be giving thanks for another year gone by, for the blessings God bestowed upon us, for a new baby boy due in December and for my sister in law finishing her treatments on the 19th of November.  

With all this in mind, one of the first things I do every year, is make my fruitcakes.  It didn't happen last year though, if you remember it was right after my sweet mother in law passed away, so we didn't celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas the way we usually do.  We just didn't have it in us to do.

But, the fruitcakes are baked this year, and instead of the usual rum I use to drizzle on top, I decided to try something different.  Kahlua Salted Caramel Liqueur.  It tastes amazing in the fruit cake.  Yes, I always take a little bit to try and make sure they're good.  

Speaking of which, I need to go and give the cakes another drizzle this morning.

 

 

♥ Reading ♥ 

Reading has come back into my heart, with a bang.  I missed it so much.  I have this tremendous love for books.  My shelves are full, and anytime I am in a bookstore, I can't help but purchase one or two more.  There is just something about a physical book in my hands, that brings such joy to my heart.

 

Among the review books that I have, I also have my own piles of books waiting to be read.  I don't always have the time for mine because my review books take priority, but when I have a little break in that commitment, I immediately grab one of mine.

The review book I just finished is called The Book of Timothy and it is a true story, based on quite a famous case from many years ago.  It is the story of Timothy Nockels who was abused by a Catholic priest.  It's quite hard to read because of the circumstances, but a very good book nonetheless.

From my own pile, I have grabbed Francine River's A Lineage of Grace which tells the fictional stories, of 5 very important women in the lineage of Jesus Christ.  Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba and Mary.

I also have Sons of Encouragement which is also part of the same series, and tells the fictional story of Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos and Silas.  That sounds like a phenomenal book too.

 

♥ Sweet Elliott Time ♥

This little boy has crept into my heart and has been a life saver, since my heart broke in August, when my Marley left.  I don't talk about it much because I am still grieving.  

I have not been Ok. I still cry, I still miss him, I still don't understand why this happened and I still hurt like nothing I've ever felt before.  But Elliott has been my little shadow.  He is quite naughty at times, and that's expected since he is just a year old, but he follows me around, snuggles up next to me in bed or the couch for naps, and gets so happy when he seems me get up each morning.

He immediately starts purring, rubbing against my legs, drops and just lays at my feet, closing his eyes while I pet him.  He plays with me, he loves playing fetch with the aluminum foil balls, he loves laying in the kitchen while I cook.  He is just my companion and I thank God every day for him.

 

 

♥ Fall Cooking ♥

I love cooking all year long, but Fall and Winter time just brings forth all the stick to your ribs, filling, yummy stews and soups.  We've had soup a few times already, starting with the one I just posted above which was a Portuguese bean soup, with sausage and potato and carrots.  It was one of the best soups we have ever eaten, so good, so filling and thick and tummy warming.

 

I also made an Amish Chicken recipe which was delicious and so easy to make.  I'll have that recipe on the blog later today.

 

 

Curt is still working on his Master's Degree, he will be done in March of 2022.  He has been listening to the Lord and trying to figure out what and where He is leading him, and lately he has felt the pull to do Youth Ministry, so he has talked to our church pastor about it.  We are praying on it and will see where God takes us.

Jasmine has been doing amazing at driving.  She loves it, she has a renewed confidence about her that I am incredibly grateful for.  She is loving work, loving her cowokers, has gone out with them after work and is just living life to the fullest at the moment.  As always we pray for her and continually ask the Holy spirit to pursue her heart.

Nick is also starting his journey towards getting his driver's license as well, and he is trying to figure out where to go with his future.  He is not sure if he wants to go to college or go straight to work.  We are praying on that as well, that God continues to guide him.

I'm doing well, I'm still holding on to the Lord's hand and continuing on my own spiritual journey.  It has been life changing in so many ways, I am so much more aware of everything around me.  I never understood discernment until last year, and now I can't imagine life without it.

I hope to do a full post on discernment, what it is, and why you need it.

And that's it my friends.  You are all caught up on what has been happening around here.  Just plain ol' living, being with family and keeping our heads above the water in this crazy world.

Have a blessed Tuesday, thank you as always for coming by to see me and leaving such sweet comments.  I really appreciate them.

I'm going to end this post here, go and give my fruitcakes their weekly boozy bath, and make myself a salad for lunch, before I have to step out to pick Jasmine up from work.

{ Elliott got neutered, ready for Christmas and some bread baking }

 

We are inching ever so close to Christmas day. 

My word, has this year flown by. 

I don't think anyone is complaining because it definitely has been one for the history books.  But through all the chaos, grief, craziness, obstacles thrown our way, it has also brought my family abundant blessings and a huge growth spiritually.

I am still not quite there with the Christmas spirit, but I do remind myself daily that the reason we celebrate, is not one to let slip by unnoticed.  So for that reason alone, I am pushing on and trying my best to embrace the season.

The days have slowed down, the temperatures have been true to winter, well, somewhat, because the past two days we've hit the 70s.  Go figure!

I have been spending time in the kitchen, organizing and changing things around a bit.  I don't know about you all, but I feel that things are never quiet like I want them to be.  I think it should be one way, this drawer for that thing, or that shelf for this and that, and then as I go about my day, I realize that it's not working.

Guess what I'm trying to say is that, even 5 years into living in this house, I don't think I've yet figured out exactly where I want my kitchen things to go.  Hahahah 

Maybe one day I'll get there.

 

My Christmas shopping is completely done, everything is wrapped and under the tree.  Actually, I do have my brother's present still arriving, hopefully today.  That will be the last one to wrap and then yes, I can say I am officially done. 

We are spending Christmas Eve at my brother's house, and then Christmas day at home, as we always do, eating leftovers and enjoying all the new gifts we receive.

I will show you what I get in a post after Christmas, probably this coming weekend.

 

I've done quite a bit of baking, Portuguese rolls, Italian Bread and some amazing butter swim biscuits.  I really need to get these all on the food blog, but I just haven't had the time.

Switching gears a bit because I want to show you my Philodendron.  Remember I got her back in the summer?

She has grown sooooooo much.  She is actually now resting on my Peace Lily, crazy.

I have trimmed her, I have also propagated her and now have a new one growing.  I will take pictures of that one and show you as well.  Once it rooted, I transplanted it to a pot with soil and she is very happy in there.

 

 Our little Elliott got neutered yesterday morning.  It broke my heart to leave him at the vet, I always feel so bad leaving them with strangers.  I would like to say that I didn't cry, but that would be a lie hahah

I was counting down the minutes until we could pick him up.  When we did, the nurse asked us to go back with her because he was not happy at all.  He was still coming out of anesthesia, his pupils were dilated and obviously he didn't know anyone around him, so he was hissing and growling at the nurses.

As soon as we walked in, I called his name and starting talking to him like I do, and he gave out the sweetest meow and calmed down.  Curt got him from the cage and wrapped him in his blanket.  I held him all the way home and he just either stared up at me, or closed his eyes and burrowed his face into my chest.  Poor baby.

   

I will say, this was the easiest neutering ever.  He came home with no pain, no sutures and no cone.  He was starving, so was very happy to get his food and then even though he was slightly drowsy still, he started playing with his toys, jumping off and on things (much to my distress, but you can't really control a cat from jumping).

We opted to do a laser treatment on his incision, which was done right after surgery and closed up the incision, there was no need for sutures and it also means no risk of infection etc.  For $25, I think it is well worth it.  He hasn't licked at the area, he hasn't messed with it, he is already acting like his old self.  It is great.

 

 He has been quite sleepy though.  They gave us some pain meds for the next two days, and I gave him one this morning.  He has been sleeping since then, which is wonderful to see, it means he is healing and not jumping up and down on things.

 

 I have also been enjoying my time with God.  I never thought I would enjoy reading the Bible as much as I have.  I will say, getting the right version makes all the difference in the world.  This is my first NIV version and I wish all my other Bibles were the same, it makes reading the word a breeze, I understand it, which is a great thing especially when you're moving through the Old Testament. 

 

Another thing I've been busy with, is creating a new recipe folder for myself.  I love old folders.  I won't say I don't like having recipes online, I mean,  I have a food blog for goodness sake, but I really enjoy having a folder with printed or hand written recipes.

So, been printing a lot of yummy recipes, some favorites that I want to have on hand, other new ones that I tried and have enjoyed too.  It's been a lot of fun.

Today I plan on going through my hand written recipes, I have some with my grandmothers handwriting, that I want to put in this folder too.

 

Also received some amazing Gooseberry Patch Christmas books from my sweet friend Tina.  She is such a sweetheart and knows how much I love Gooseberry Patch.  Thank you Tina :)

So there you have it, that is what has been going on here at home.

I am looking forward to the beginning of a new year, and to really get back to blogging.  If 2020 taught me something, is that life is short and time is precious, and we need to do what we love and enjoy, and stop focusing on things that don't matter.

It was a hard lesson to learn but it sure has changed my perspective on many things.

Anyway, I think I have talked for long enough, if you've made it all the way to the bottom here, thank you and God bless you hahah

I'm off to get dressed, start a load of laundry and then run to Walmart with Curt, I'm not sure what he needs but he wants to run by there quick.

Have a wonderful Wednesday friends.  Hope you are all ready for Christmas.

{ Fresh haircut and finally have bedside tables }

It is Sunday night, and I am in my bed, under the warm covers, shivering.   I am so cold!

The weather hasn't been too bad for this time of the year, we've been in the high 70's which is not normal for end of November, but today they dropped down, we had rain and high winds and all sorts of winter weather.

I will say though, we have yet to light the fire.  We try to hold out until it gets much colder so that we don't go through our wood pile too quickly.

Let me show you how I spent my weekend.

Starting with Friday morning, I dropped Jasmine off at work, then went to my commissary.  Last Friday when I got my groceries, I did a Walmart pick up, and as much as I like the convenience of it, there is always something that I order that doesn't make it to my house.  Which is ok, if they told me they didn't have the item, but they don't, they just leave it out of the order and I usually don't even realize until I'm ready to cook and am missing something.

I know, my fault too because I should check as soon as I get home, and I don't.

Anyway, some chicken, pork chops, and a few other items never made it to the pickup, and I kind of put it off for a week, but really needed them for meals, so decided to go ahead and make a trip to the store.

I managed to get everything I needed and a few extras my husband asked for, like chips.  The ground beef was also pretty cheap, so I picked up a few extra for the freezer.

Got home, got it all put away, with my trusty helper, Elliott.  He is the inspector, checks every bag, smells everything, you know quality inspector.  Hahah

Didn't do much else on Friday other than picking up my daughter from work, making dinner and cleaning the house.

Saturday morning we dropped her back off at work and then drove by Walmart to pick up the peanut oil we needed for our turkey.  Luckily for us, we spotted some really nice bedside tables for a very good price, and decided to go ahead and get them.

Got back home, and Curt got busy with his college work, he had a few papers to write.  I decided to build the furniture myself while he did that.

Love how they turned out, it is exactly what I was looking for.

While I worked on those, someone took a nap on the bed.  He is so cute, and look at just how fluffy he is.  Sweet boy!

Curt brought in some more harvest from our Fall/Winter garden.  My lettuce is going crazy out there, and so are my green onions.

I soaked everything in a water and vinegar bath, then set them out to dry on clean kitchen towels, and packed everything away between paper towels, for use during the week.

While that was drying, I worked on laundry, folded a ton while hanging out with hubby.  Look at the smile on his face hahahah  He figured out the camera was set and quickly looked back like this.  LOL

Marley sat at my feet, chewing on a piece of cardboard he ripped from a box.  He is such a gorgeous looking dog.  Love him so much.

And yes, I got a fresh hair cut.  I was trying so hard to grow out my hair but I just can't do it.  I have very thick heavy hair and it becomes a hassle for me.  I got a bob, not an asymmetrical one, just a plain bob and it already feels lighter.

And cutey Elliott sat on the couch, next to the laundry basket, pawing at every article of clothing I pulled out. 

Now let me show you Elliott's mama.  She is our barn cat, remember I told you the story of how she abandoned him in our workshop.  She took all the others and left our sweet boy behind.  

I know it's normal for this to happen, but every time I think about it, it makes me so sad.  Just thankful Curt went to the workshop that day and found them, or he would have died in there.

But, regardless of that, he looks so much like her, the face is different though and she is not fluffy like he is, but you can tell they are related.

Today, we started with rain and high winds.  I took Jasmine to work early morning and then came home, worked on editing these photos, let Marley sleep on my lap for a little and just took it easy.

Marley wasn't feeling very well today, he threw up a few times this morning and his stomach was making loud noises all morning long.  When he feels that way, he likes to lay on my lap and rest, so I let him do that.

I kind of needed that moment too.

While I was driving back home this morning, it was raining and the wind was blowing , and my little car always feels like it's being smacked around on the road.  It makes me nervous and uneasy, and so I turn to prayer and keep it going until I pull into my driveway.

But as I was driving, I was praying and listening to worship music and the tears just started to flow.  I don't know why or where they came from, but I got a knot in my throat and it just went from there.  

I started then thinking of my sweet mother in law and how she is no longer among us, how this is the first Thanksgiving without her, and it really hit me that she is gone for good.

Needless to say by the time I got home, I wanted to lay on my bed and nap all these feelings away.

And I did just that, a very short nap and then back to laundry.

Little did I know that Elliott was about to give me a huge surprise.  I had washed some bed sheets yesterday, but set them on the couch and didn't get to fold them because we got busy with other stuff.

I went to fold them today and as I started folding the flat sheet I realized that it smelled weird, and I couldn't figure out why.  I brought it to my nose, smelled it and again pulled it away.  I didn't know why it was smelling like that because I had just washed them.  That's when my eyes shifted to the couch, and a dead mouse was laying there, right where the sheet was.

  

You guys, the scream I let out must have been heard countrywide.

I dropped the sheets to the ground and ran to the kitchen.  Shoved my face under water and washed as hard as I could all the time gagging and trying to tell myself that it was ok that my nose touched the sheet that was on the dead mouse.  Hahahah

I don't know, I don't know if I can handle this mice thing with cats.  Lord knows I can't stand mice, they make my skin crawl, and now it's been 3 mice that I've had to encounter hahahah

Jesus give me strength!

Anyway, I thought that was a funny story to share and some of you cat moms can appreciate.

I am going to get this post up, then try and get some reading done before bed.  How has another weekend gone by so fast, how is it Thanksgiving in a few days?  Goodness.

Have a blessed night friends, I'll be back in the morning with our Happy Homemaker Monday.

{ New camera and my reading basket }

 

Well hello there. 

Yes, it's me, actually sitting down to work on a post that is not a Happy Homemaker Monday or a book review. For shame!!! 

Honestly, I don't like seeing my blog like this, it bothers me because I feel like so much has been happening, and so much is going on in our lives, that I should be writing it down. 

But time, time just slips through my fingers and I end up letting days, weeks and months go by without a proper blog post.

   

Not what I like to do, but it is what it is. Anyway, I am here right now and I just wanted to come in and chat a bit, catch you up on what has been happening, what we've been doing and so on. 

As you may have noticed, or maybe you didn't, but I finally got a new camera. 

My old camera has officially been packed up and set aside.  It still works and will be kept as a back up, but I am so thrilled with my new one. My husband surprised me with a Canon Rebel T7. My previous was a Canon Rebel T2i and it has been a huge blessing for 10 years.  

Yes, 10 years I had that camera. The poor thing was falling apart, the little plastic cover for the memory card won't stay shut, my battery compartment was also loose, the padding around the camera itself was coming unglued and you can even see where my fingers sit because it has worn completely down.

 

And yet, I still love it.  It was my first big girl camera, and I'll always have it with me.   I can't say that I'm not excited about my new one because I am, it's a blessing for sure and it's been a dream of mine to upgrade for many and I mean many years.   

It has been a bit hard learning all the new ways to take photos, obviously being a newer model the menu is different, the way the camera itself works is different and so on. 

It took me over an hour to finally enable my back button focus LOL 

I enjoy it though, I have always loved learning new techniques and new technology, so it's been fun figuring this one out.  It also helps that I have the cutest subjects that let me just snap pictures.  They're the best, never complain, never say they don't look good in the shots and always willing to just sit there and let me go on snapping here and there.

I think I had already mentioned how we finally also got a new bed?  I'm not sure, this is what happens when I don't talk to you every day, then I get on here and have no clue what I've shared or IF I've shared certain things.

Anyway, before we go on and I tell you about the new bed, I just wanted to clear something up.

It may seem like all of a sudden we are making all these purchases, and that is true in a way, but these are purchases that have been made over the past few weeks or so, and the reason they all seem to be happening right now, is because we are finally on our feet financially.

We have been very strict with our money and have worked extremely hard to pay off all our debt.  Just in the past few months, we paid off our lawn mower, my car, our credit card and our military card.  The only thing left is Curt's truck and we're working towards getting rid of that debt as soon as we can.

What that means for us, is that, as things have been getting paid off, we've been able to set money aside for these purchases that we needed to make, or rather these upgrades.

Next on our list of wants and needs are a new fridge, a new dishwasher, redoing the kitchen floor and the dining room floor.

But those things will come in God's timing and when we have the money for them.  

The feeling of paying off debt is wonderful though and we are very thankful to be at this stage in our lives.  Best advice I can give?

Stay away from credit cards LOL

We have also been trying to wade through a lot of legal stuff pertaining to my mother in law's passing.  That takes up a lot of time, a lot of phone calls and traveling back and forth between Texas and Oklahoma.  

It's not something we like having to do, but it is what it is, and we just have to push through and do the best we can.  

My mother in law had a house in Oklahoma that has been now passed on to my husband and his brother, so there's that too for us to deal with.

Like I said, a lot of craziness at the moment.

But, I am relying on my books to help me relax and forget the stress going on around us.

  

I have a basket, have had it for years, where I keep the books I'm currently reading, or rather, on my reading list.  It used to hold my library books, now it just holds the newer books I've acquired either at the Christian book store or while we're at thrift stores.

This one is next on my list.  Matter of fact, I think tomorrow or sometime this weekend, I will begin this bible study.  

Can not wait.  

And speaking of books I can't wait to get into?  Can we say Francine Rivers?  One of my favorite book authors.  

Sons of Encouragement and A lineage of Grace.

And then of course Liz Curtis Higgs who we know is a fantastic Christian book author.

So that's basically what I've been up to.  Homemaking, driving back and forth, taking care of business *literally* and reading, reading, reading.

I better skidaddle on out of here, it is bedtime for me, I have an early day tomorrow.

I'll leave you with this adorable picture of our Elliott getting all comfy for a nap.