{ Weekend in Review }

Hello friends, here we are at the end of another weekend.

It is currently 6:34PM here in Texas, and I'm relaxing on the couch, in my pj's, freshly showered and sipping on a lovely cup of hot tea with milk (my favorite way to drink tea).

Before I do a quick review of the weekend, let me show you my bird wreath from the other day.  I made it, let it dry overnight and have finally hung it on the porch.

How beautiful is that?  And how perfectly matching and appropriate is the ribbon I found to use?  Cute little birds :)

I went through my stash of ribbons and found this small piece, it's only about a foot long or so and was just what I needed to hang my wreath.  I'll be making more this coming week, but if you're interested in making some for yourself, I did a tutorial on them a few years ago, so you can check it out on my post titled "Bird Seed Wreath".

Now what did I do this weekend?

Well a couple of things actually.  I started my Saturday morning needing to get my new car tags done as mine had just expired on the 30th of June.

Living in a small town means that quite often, you don't have everything you need at hand and so last year, when we go the tags done, we had to go to one place for the State Inspection on the car, and then to another for the tags.  We actually went to United Supermarkets for that as our local one does them.

Drove all the way to Hayes to do the inspection only to realize when I got there, that I didn't have my insurance card in the car.  Dangit.  I drove all the way back home to get print a new one, and my printer decided not to cooperate.  I was so frustrated to be doing this back and forth so early in the morning, so I just went ahead and installed my app for USAA and now I have my Insurance proof at hand anytime without having to rely on paper.

While I waited for the inspection to finish, I walked around the store.  They have such a huge variety of home ware, furniture, washers and dryers, guns and candles and all sorts of cool things.

The inspection didn't take but 10 minutes and when I went to pay for it, they informed me that they now do the tags too, so inspection done, tags bought, registration renewed and they even get the tags up on the windshield for you.  Perfect!!!

Of course what isn't so perfect is the price.....almost $100.  Good grief!!!

I returned home, got the laundry going, did a bit of housecleaning and sat down with a quick lunch for myself.

Yellow pepper strips with some hummus, two small pieces of the Crazy Pizza Bread, the last 2 deviled eggs from the 4th of July and a banana yogurt.  By the way, I didn't enjoy it, I also tried another flavor from these Custard yogurts and didn't like it either.  Not really sure what it is about them, but I didn't like them and definitely won't be buying them again.



Around 6pm, Curt, Jasmine and I were heading out to go grab some Panda Express for dinner.  We just recently got a Panda Express in Wichita Falls, so even though it's about 20 minutes from us, and not something we do often, we figured it was Saturday night and it sounded really good.

We step outside and noticed smoke and a fire on the property right across from us.

Two firetrucks quickly pulled out and there was a big of a confusion going on.  We weren't quite sure what was happening because the house had been for sale and didn't have anyone in there.

My husband of course, went over and talked to the neighbor and the firemen, and it turns out that a little old lady moved into the house a few days ago and was mowing and clearing up the back yard.  She decided to burn a stack of wood sticks and stumps she cleared up, not realizing that she is still technically considered to be in city limits.

The firemen quickly put out the fire.  That was a bit of excitement here in our quiet neighborhood, for sure.

We eventually made it to Panda, got our food, came back home and ate dinner, I did the dishes, then sat down and watched the new Ghost Adventures.

Sunday::::

I finished off the laundry, got it all put away, worked on finishing up Part 7 of the Atlanticus blanket and caught up on Youtube videos.

Around lunch time, hubby asked if we wanted to go to lunch at this hole in the wall Mexican place downtown.  He had been there before with his coworkers and really enjoyed it.  And so we went.

I switched out my handbag before leaving, to one of my Cath Kidstons.  I just absolutely adore that handbag, especially during the summer months.  Love it's square, boxy look :)

We had an amazing lunch, the food was so good, and so far the best Mexican we've had in Texas, though there are quite a few others we want to try before we really decide which is our favorite.

If you want to see what we had, you can check out my Instagram, I shared our meal on there.  Matter of fact, if you haven't yet done so, be sure to follow me there, I share quite a lot on there :)

Came back home, and then hubby and I sat and watched the special that was on the History Channel today, about the Roanoke Colony.  It was very good and we quite enjoyed it.  I find all of that fascinating, really.

And that my friends, is how we spent our weekend.  Tomorrow is Monday already, and one day closer to school starting.  Feels like summer is just rushing on by, isn't it?

I'll leave you with some pictures of Mister Atlanticus in all his gorgeous glory.  After having to pull out about 20 rows, I was able to get caught back up and now ready for tomorrow's Part 8 release.

He is currently in the corner of the living room, on the floor, being blocked.   The center has a tendency to bulge a little, even though I've tried to redo it and make sure the stitches are right and the tension is not off etc.  It is what it is, and to be honest, if you know me, you know that I don't like perfection in my projects, I much prefer to see a flaw here or there, it gives it more character.

Righto, I'm going to work on my next Menu Plan for the next 30 minutes or so and then head to bed.

OH before I forget, if you're interested in the Amelia Earhart story, the History Channel has a special going at 8pm about her disappearance and what could have happened, and new clues that may point to her having been taking hostage by the Japanese and so on.  It sounds and looks quite interesting, so Curt and I are going to settle into bed and watch that before turning in for the night.

Have a wonderful Sunday evening and I'll meet you all back here tomorrow for Happy Homemaker Monday :)

{ Goodwill, Dollar Tree, Walmart and Bed, Bath and Beyond }

And so went my Saturday.

If I had read this title elsewhere I would have been majorly jealous thinking that the author of the pst was one lucky woman.  Some of my favorite places all in one day.  And while it did happen, it wasn't exactly for me, I guess I was just the ride along this time hahaha

Only place I really needed to run by was Walmart and the post office, and unfortunately the post office didn't happen.

Curt, Jasmine and I were out doing some errands, mainly all for Jasmine really.

Started this morning with some laundry and house cleaning.

But before I continue, I have to say that I could use some prayers for my health.  For the past week I've been feeling slightly lightheaded.  I think it's sinus related because I'm congested (I also have terrible allergies which have gotten worse since moving to Texas), and it hurts my cheekbones if I touch them.  But for the past week I've had this lightheaded, woozy kinda feeling going on, almost feels like a head cold kinda thing.  It's so frustrating.  I can handle headaches, a cold, allergies or whatever, but feeling that disconnected kinda feeling is very frustrating.

Anyway, I'm hitting this with Sudafed and hoping it clears up, if not, then I'll be headed to the doctor next week to see what I can do.

But back to my day, got dishes, laundry and some house cleaning done, then basically sat down and watched the first episode of the new Orange is the New Black Season on Netflix, while I waited for Curt and Jasmine to get ready.  Also worked on Jasmine's new Cosplay, I'm trying to make the gun and it's proving to be quite a pain in the behind.  But I can't wait to show you all the finished costume put together, it's adorable :)

I also got a bucket going with hot water and Oxyclean for my crochet pieces.   I'll let them sit overnight and then throw them in the washer tomorrow.

Let Marley out to use the potty,

and almost walked smack into this spider....AGAIN!!!!

He was there the other day and I thought he had disappeared, but nope, I stood out in the back patio watching Marley and this creeper literally came creeping down on it's web and stopped and dangled right by my face.  Like, what the heck???

I don't know what kind of spider it is, I really don't want to know, all I care is that it stays far far away from me.

Fed and change the water for Jasmine's birds.  Aren't they adorable?

And then finally we got on the road.

So our first stop was actually at Luigi's for lunch, hubby wanted to take us girls there.  It's a great Italian restaurant right here in town, it's pretty inexpensive, and serves delicious authentic Italian.  We usually go for the lunch special which is just $6.

Today we all picked the Pasta Sampler which is Lasagna, Spinach Ravioli and Cheese Manicotti.  So good.

After that we headed to Goodwill.  Jasmine needed some pieces for her new cosplay, basically she

She now has everything she needs, just have to make her handkerchief, paint the headphones and make the weapon, and that's it.

After Goodwill we actually went by Aaron's to see if they had any ride on mowers available, but unfortunately they only have it online, so that was a bust of a visit.

Next we went by the Dollar Tree, I hadn't been there in a couple of months.  We have 2 Dollar General's nearby as well as a Family Dollar, but the nearest Dollar Tree is about 20 minutes away so I don't always go by.  I do love it though, I always find so many things.  I got two organizing baskets for under my sinks, some Fourth of July things, and some dish sponges and brillo pads.  Jasmine got the red lipstick she needed and Curt picked up some picture frames for his Class Graduation pictures that he still had to put up on the Office wall.

After that it was Walmart for Dog Food, and of course hubby got Marley some toys and a big bone to chew on, which he absolutely adores.

By the time we got home, I was so done being out in the heat.  My feet hurt, my stupid head cold/sinus/lightheaded whatever was starting up again and I just wanted to relax.

So I can say that by 5pm, I had already taken my shower and gotten into my pajamas.

A good day.

Or at least I thought it was until I took that picture above of Jasmine's outfit.  Right after I took that picture, I set my camera down and it came tumbling down onto the tiled floor.  It broke my favorite 50mm f1.4 lens, and it also busted one of the pins inside the lens compartment.  I am now down to my zoom lens which doesn't really help for day to day photos.  I'm so upset and sad, I've had this camera for 6 years and have been so careful with it because really, it's not an expense that we can just have or go out and quickly buy another.

I don't know when I'll be able to get a new camera, so I'm completely bummed out.  I will have to use my 18-55mm standard lens, which had started acting up the past year, not really auto focusing etc.  But I'll make do, at least the camera still works so I'm thankful and blessed for that.

Anyway, that was my Saturday.  I'm going to go and make myself a cup of coffee and a sandwich (that will be my dinner tonight, not too hungry) and then I'm going to sit down and wait for the new The Dead Files episode at 8pm, and maybe watch one or two more episodes of the Orange is the New Black before going to sleep.

Goodness, I just pray that tomorrow I wake up feeling 100% better and this foggy head feeling is gone, I've about had enough of it.

Hope you all have a wonderful Saturday night.

{I'm so tired.....}

It's been a really busy, on the go, day.

We were out the door at 10am and didn't return until almost 5pm.  But I loved every single minute that I was out with my husband and daughter.

The day started with a therapy appointment for Jasmine.  It was her last one and she was officially discharged by her therapist.  I can't even begin to tell you how proud of her we are, she's come so far from that first day we brought her into the therapist's office.  It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

AS a parent we have the idea that if anyone can fix our children's problems, it's us.  There's no one out there that can do it, no one out there knows them better.  So when faced with the reality that they're struggling, they're in trouble and it is completely out of our hands, it's so hard to hand over that control to someone else.  I mean, let's face it, I don't even like giving out control to God over smaller things (I know, it's a huge problem for me and a lesson I've been trying to learn for decades).  But that day, in that office, my daughter was completely broken, falling apart, a mere shadow of the bubbly happy child she'd always been, and I had to sit back and hand over the reigns, knowing that she would rather talk to a stranger than to her own mother.

What a tough pill to swallow, but looking back, it was the best and most unselfish thing I could have ever done for my child.  What a huge difference from a year ago :)

Anyway, she was officially discharged, the therapist is beyond thrilled with her progress and how far she's come and really proud of her too.  She crept right into her heart and she was teary eyed as she said goodbye to her.  I can't even begin to thank her enough for what she did for my child.  I'll forever be grateful.

After we left the therapy appointment, we went straight to Midwestern State University to speak to Admissions.  Jasmine is interested in attending the school, wants to do Fine Arts and Theatre and is all excited about the possibilities ahead of her.  We had a very good talk with the admissions person and got all the info we needed.  We are now beginning the application and registration process, gathering transcripts and starting out FAFSA applications and all that fun stuff.  I can't believe we are here, at this point already, especially since this past week I've been revisiting the year of 2006 in my blog and my girl was just 7 years old.  Time FLIES!!!

We then stopped by the mall, she wanted to pick up a gift for her dad for Father's day.  This is what she got, she actually saw it about two weeks ago and immediately wanted it for her dad.  How sweet is that?

I also have to show you what my husband got me.  I was shocked.  But he's been hearing me complain about the dark circles under my eyes and the wrinkles and how I can't find a good eye cream and so on.  He surprised me with these today.

This one below is actually for me and Jasmine.  Because of her anxiety she is constantly messing with her fingernails and cuticles.  This will help with that.

And these are the ones for me.  I already tried them and was shocked at how well the serum worked, it was almost instantly and my wrinkles were gone.  I will have to do a post and review on these for you all and show you just how well it works.





We stopped at Cottonpatch Cafe for lunch. By far my absolute favorite restaurant. So good.

After lunch we had to run to the realtor office to sign our new lease, we now have a 2 year lease on this house, but with the option to buy at any time, which we are ecstatic about. We definitely want to try and buy it in about a year, just want to get rid of our credit card before that.

Made a quick stop at the UPS store to drop off Nick's school materials, and then our last stop was at Best Buy to try and find something that can access my external storage hard drive. The case itself where the cables hooked up to, stopped working and reading the USB connections. We were able to find something else, it's called a docking station that you can basically just pop your hard drive into and you can access it.

Problem is, for some reason, Windows 10 will NOT recognize it and won't automatically detect it or install the drivers. I spent about 2 hours working on it and can't seem to fix it, so I'm going to have to return this to Best Buy. I'm so frustrated because the storage drive holds ALL of my photographs dating back from 2003. I really do need to find a way to access it.

Anyway, I have to get going, Jasmine has decided that she wants a tattoo, and now that's 18, we really don't get a say. She has an appointment for 8:30 tonight and I have to drive her there.

I feel like so much is happening at once, so many changes with her lately, so I'm trying to take deep breaths and just go with it. Oh my friends, if you have little ones, hug them tighter, enjoy every single second because time just goes by so quickly and before you know it, you are where I am.

Have a wonderful Friday night, I'll be back tomorrow :)

Dagnabit it's morning already!!!

I'm in a cranky mood today, not only am I not feeling very well and have TONS of errands to run, but I got not sleep last night. Was up with Jasmine, seems she pulled a muscle in her neck (while sleeping) and then woke me up at 2am because it hurt and she couldn't go back to sleep....gave her some pain medicine and was able to get her back to sleep at 4am. So at this point I'm thinking "Oh Lord, I really need to get to bed, I'm exhausted"....and you know when you're up in the middle of the night, you're so tired that you actually get nauseous???

Yeah, that was the point I was at....but I finally crawled back into bed, pulled the covers over me and snuggled up next to Nicholas. (Daddy works midshift so little one sleeps with mommy) Within 30 minutes he wakes up crying that he needs to go potty....ok, so I'm up again taking him, all the good that does because he had already peed on my bed.
THIS is the point where your tired and deluded mind comes into action because seriously, in my sane well rested moments, I would NEVER think something like this:

Insane Me - *looking at the wet bed* I wonder if I can just scoot all the way to the edge and go back to sleep and then deal with the sheets in the morning, it's not politically incorrect is it?
Sane Me - You're kidding right? You'll be asleep, which means you most likely will move over and land smack dab in the middle of that pile of pee.

OHKAYYYY.....clean him up, change the sheets (thank goodness the comforter wasn't on him so it was clean)....look up at the clock, it's 5:30am...well, no use getting back into bed now only to be up in 30 minutes. Good morning sunshine!!! (not really, there's no sun out yet, dagnabit)

So I have my wonderful coffee in my hand, I even had a hard time getting the pot going this morning, would you believe me if I told you I put the filter in and the water and then turned it on and sat there wondering why in the world the coffee looked like water????
HEY, Sandra, how about some actual *coffee granules* in there?!?!?! I don't know, just a hint weirdo!!! *sigh* such is my day today!!!
What's that saying again "WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS"???

Oh before I forget, if you look just below, you'll see my Works for me Wednesday post, yes I know it's been forever since I've participated, but I figured what the heck, I'm up *way too early* and have nothing to do, and since it's the Christmas Edition, I felt I could actually contribute something because I ran out of ideas for the usual one. *snort*

I've seen a lot of new faces around my blog, seems that some lurkers have come out of the woodwork and started leaving me such nice comments, thank you all, I LOVE making new friends. I'm hoping for some time today to go by and say hi, and you can ask any of my older friends here, I always come bearing coffee and yummy goodies to eat, don't I??? LOL

Oh I don't know how I'm going to make it through today, I'm thinking that at some point I may just pass out with exhaustion, but maybe all the coffee I'm ingesting will do the trick. One thing is for certain, I can NOT wait for bedtime.

Why is it that when you want the day to drag, it flies by, and then when you really want it to hurry up and end, it drags??? I just know that it's going to be one of those, and I'm not one for power naps, or I would certainly take one this afternoon. I'm a weird person, I don't do the whole "nap in the afternoon" thing, because when I wake up, I'm IMPOSSIBLE to live with. I'm cranky as heck and I'm annoyed because I wanted to sleep more and now it's just made me even more tired. There HAS to be a school you go to where they teach you how to take "20 minute power naps"....come on, some of you *must* know where it is, help a lady out will ya???

It's payday in military land, YIPPEE!!! It also means grocery shopping and paying bills and all that fun stuff that makes being a housewife all the more rewarding. *insert sarcasm here* lol
But yes, my day is going to consist of dropping Jasmine off at school, come back home and finish the menus and grocery list, go get groceries, come back home and put them away, go to the post office, go drop off the books at the library (they're late, YIKES), run by airman's attic to drop off donations.
Run back home, fix lunch for Nicholas, watch General Hospital, run back out to pick up Jasmine, run by Cop Shack to get fingerprints for my Legal paperwork, come back home and start fixing dinner.

So if you see my energy laying around anywhere, please pick it up and send it on back to me??? It was already gone by the time I got up this morning, sneaky little one!!!

I wanted to share a picture with you, this was the sky last night as the sun started setting, isn't it gorgeous??? We always take for granted the beauty around us, we just assume it's a sky and a sunset, but don't take nearly enough time to *really* look at it.

So I'm leaving you with that picture, because I'm running out of things to say, my poor exhausted mind is not thinking straight. I could just start spouting off the words running around in my mind, but believe me, you would have NO CLUE as to what I was saying. LOL

Oh I almost forgot, some of you asked me what Paperbackswap is...welllllll, it's this wonderful site where you list the paperback books that you no longer want and for each book that someone requests from you, and you send out, you get a credit which you can then use to request books for yourself. It's a great way to get rid of the older ones you have and get the ones you've been looking for. I've been on there for about a year and I've managed to get rid of most of mine, but in return I've gotten so many great ones, especially Christian books that I was looking for.

It's also really easy to do. You list your books, someone requests a book from you and you get an email saying that the book is requested. Then you go to your account, print out a wrapper for it, stick on 4 stamps and send it off, that's it. How neat is that???
So if you like books as much as I do, go ahead and give it a try, for the first 8 or 9 books that you list, you get 3 free credits :)

Have a wonderful wednesday, and hopefully when you see me tomorrow morning, I'm well rested and not weird like today. I'm out, and I'm taking my coffee with me, sorry, I really need it.

God Bless,


For dinner we're having Pastitsio, I will post the recipe later today.