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.

Works for me Wednesday *Christmas Edition*

Wow, it's been forever since I've participated in the WFMW.....just haven't had the time, but being that this is a special Christmas Edition, I didn't want to pass it up :)

Being a military family means that we are constantly on the move and always far from our families, which makes it really really hard during the holidays, especially when hubby is deployed too and it's just me and the kids.

So about 5 years ago I came up with a way to make it feel like the family is here with us during the holidays. I started hanging up ornaments with the names of all the family members that can't be with us, whether because they live far away or have passed on :)

It's become a tradition for us to hang up these ornaments and remember every family member, always brings a smile to my face.

Now if you're crafty, you can really get into it, but they're pretty easy to make. All you need is colored ball ornaments, some glitter and some permanent markers, some ribbon or anything else you want to put on there. For years mine looked like this:

But with kids, it meant that half of them were broken or simply vanished into thin air. So this year, I'm turning them into a garland, I'm going to cut out some felt christmas shapes and either write or embroider the names on, then use some twine to string it all together. Voila!!!

I got the idea from this Thanksgiving Garland that I'm making right now. :)

If you want to play along and post your own WFMW idea, just head on over to Shannon at "Rocks in my Dryer". :)

Raindrops keep falling.....

The rain has finally let up this morning, after a night of pounding on the windows and rooftops.

Honestly, I thought my house was going to fly away. BUT, now that it's let up, it's brought on wind....the kind that makes you wonder why you even bother brushing your hair, because the minute I step out that door I look like Medusa's Twin Sister. What a sight that is!!!

I had a restless night, tossing and turning, stomach hurting and just an overall "not feeling well". There's a cold going around so I'm gearing up for it. Got out of bed this morning and really don't feel very well, so my wonderful husband took Jasmine to school. Poor guy, he just got home from working all night and now he has to take her before finally getting to bed. I am telling you, when you find a man like him, you hold on with all your might and DON'T let him go for nothing.

I'm dragging myself around today, I really really dislike the cold weather, just because I know that unless I'm overloaded with Vitamins, I'll be sure to get the cold and the sniffles a couple times before spring comes around.

I have a hard time falling asleep at night, especially if I'm not feeling very well, the whole toss and turn thing is frustrating, but I wish I could switch off my mind. It keeps going and thinking and thinking and worrying and stressing, by the time I close my eyes it feels like within 5 minutes the alarm clock is going off.

I would LOVE to get up in the morning happy and not wondering "will it be too long before nighttime, I could really use that bed right now". What is up with that???

So I'm sitting here sipping my coffee and nibbling on an Cranberry Orange Muffin. I actually got up and made those before the kids woke up, the house smells divine. Imagine orange and cranberry together....Yummy!!!

If you're in the mood for some, just come on over, or you can get the recipe at my food blog and make them for your family :)
Cranberry Orange Muffins

You know what I've realized??? That my kids will probably end up living in one of those Nude Communities. Stop laughing and just listen why....LOL
The minute they walk in the door, from school or the store or whatever, their clothes come off. They do keep their underwear on, so I guess that would not really be considered acceptable attire for the Nude Community....but still. I've tried so hard to make them keep their clothes on, you have no idea how annoyed hubby and I get. So yeah, if you are ever in my house and hear the words "Would you put some clothes on please?", don't run, it's really nothing, just us trying to coax them into a shirt, maybe some pants???


I was getting set to write out Christmas cards and finally get my sewing done, but I don't think that's going to happen today. The holidays are rapidly approaching and I'm wondering if I'm going to have time for everything. Good thing though, I finally figured out how I want to do the Family Name Ornaments, you see, after sharing the Thanksgiving Garland with you all yesterday I realized that it would be a neat idea to do the same thing with the Christmas Names. Instead of leaves, I'll cut out some other Christmasy shape and make a garland with all the family names on there. What do you think???

Well ladies, I have 3 credits at Paperbackswap, so I think I'm going to head over and get myself 3 books. I just love that place, I've been able to get rid of all my old paperbacks that I don't read anymore, and in turn I've gotten great books, lots of them christian :)

Have a wonderful Tuesday.




Dinner tonight is just a quick Spaghetti made with Ground pork, yummy. Will serve it with a salad and some Homemade Garlic Bread.



Rachael Ray

Follow along with a viewer’s weight loss challenge, and then get to know American Idol Ruben Studdard, who’s lost over 400 pounds! Plus, Gretta's got five great beauty buys under five bucks.

General Hospital

Tracy urges Luke to tell the children that Laura's recovery could be temporary.

Dancing with the Stars

Two teams of dancers compete with a freestyle dance and another dance of the same discipline.

House

House notices something about the son of a man who has been in a coma for a decade.

NOTHING....let's celebrate LOL

Well Hi everyone, come on in....

I don't think you want to stand out there in the rain and cold, it's foggy and miserable. Come sit with me for a bit, I've got hot "Foglifter" coffee freshly ground and brewed, and I also have some Cream Danishes and some Chocolate Donuts. I'm always prepared for the crowds LOL

It's just another Manic Monday here in Tater Land. I have to laugh because when Jasmine first started Kindergarten, she couldn't get to school fast enough, she was up earlier than me and ready to go. As the years have gone by, I kept telling her "you know this enthusiasm is not going to last very long" LOL

Well DUH, she's in second grade now and getting her up in the morning is worse than giving birth...really I could pop out a few kids faster than I can get that child out of bed.

She's also learnt that if she acts sick or really tired, that I think twice about sending her to school (not really, but she believes it LOL). So unless she's running a fever, throwing up or really really sick, she's going. I think she's finally getting the message!!!

So it's monday, we have a whole new week ahead of us, and I know I'm going to be super busy again, honestly, don't even try to call me on the phone, chances are I'm not here or too busy to get to it. Besides, like I've said before, I'm NOT a phone person, loosing someone's phone number is a GOOD day for me LOL
I should have been a hermit, I think I would have fitted in perfectly with that kind of lifestyle, isn't that sad???

I got my menus all done for this week, if you look to the right, you'll see it under Dinner Time and also at Laura's "Menu Plan Monday". There's yummy stuff being cooked all over blogland, my mouth is watering. As for my own menus, you can see things such as Slow Cooker Smothered Steak, Cornish Pies, Pastitsio etc....mmmm, yummy!!!

I'm trying to avoid running to the store today, I'm in one of those days where I really don't want to deal with kids and people??? Is that even possible, when you live ON.EARTH?!?!?!

But really, my trips to the stores are usually very stressful, there's the chasing after the kids, the yelling at the kids to stop fighting, the trying to grab everything as fast as possible only to get home and realize you've forgotten something as important as toilet paper....then have to wipe using napkins or worse PAPER TOWELS. Yeah, I've done that before!!!

And if that is not bad enough, you are all stressed and then get to the checkout and there is ALWAYS some single, hot, skinny, woman in front of me piling on vegetables and healthy stuff, while I start throwing in fruit snacks, chips, cookies, sodas and anything junky imaginable, it's not that I DON'T have the healthy stuff but for some reason, the bad ones always come out first. But what can you do huh???

I'm expecting a package from home, isn't it great when you know you're getting something from the family??? This one brings yummy goodies in in too, and some more curry powder, so I'm dying to get it. It also brings one of my all time favorite things...Bolo de Mel (Honey Cake) from Madeira.

It is SO good and it's been about 8 years since I've had any, so I can't wait to bite into it. It's one of those cakes that keeps very well, and lasts a while. I'm still looking for the best recipe for it, when I do, I'll be sure to share it with everyone :)

With Thanksgiving just around the corner and me being lazy and only this weekend removing the Halloween decorations, I was trying to come up with something fast and easy to make as a decoration for Thanksgiving, but I also wanted something that I could keep until Christmas. That is when I came upon one of my favorite Craft Blogs and found THIS...tell me is that not the perfect little garland???
For the leaf templates, go here. Guess what I'm making this week?!?!? AND, I also found a tutorial for a faster way to make pompoms, and the kids and I will be making some Turkey's for decorations. Just like the ones on Shanna's Mantle.

So there you have it, that's just some of the stuff I'll be working on this week. I also want to get started on the Christmas Name Ornaments, remember I put some up every year with the names of everyone in the family that can't be with us. Over the years I've used the plain ball ornaments and then decorated and wrote the names on them, but those were either broken by the kids (when they were little) or by the cats we used to have. Now I'm going for something made out of fabric...still having a hard time deciding on the pattern etc.

I have errands to run and house to clean, plus some clothes to iron AND I need to run to the post office to mail off the Family Portraits, yeah, that's how busy I've been that I totally forgot about those and I'm sure the family is wondering where they are, plus I have a book that needs to be mailed off for Paperbackswap. Sometimes I wonder if I will ever just fall down completely burned out, but I've also realized that I'm not one to lay around, I get bored really easily and twitchy...if ever you see me sitting on the couch and my eye starts twitching, giving me something to do, don't just stand there ok??? LOL

As you can see I have a lot on my plate right now and just not enough time in the day to get it all done. I do however plan on making some time to email my family and friends and come and visit your blogs. I think I'm pretty much caught up on everyone, but I know there's some I haven't made it to you yet. Soon, soon!!!

Have a blessed day,



Swedish Meatballs anyone??? It's one of those recipes that I always fall back to when I'm busy and don't have the energy to remember what to make with the ground beef. Going to serve them with some Butter Rice and some Green Beans :)




Rachael Ray

Gayle King shares the behind-the-scenes stories from her road trip with Oprah and plays Stump the Rach! Then, the must-have item for your wardrobe, and Dennie's advice for moms whose teens are headed into the dating game.

General Hospital

Carly agrees to give up her wedding date for Luke and Laura.

Wife Swap

A rhinestone cowgirl mother swaps with a mother who calls herself the CEO.

Bachelor Rome

Lorenzo takes the final three women on exotic dates in Sweden, Budapest and Sicily.

Laundry
Ironing
Cleaning
Errands

DECISIONS DECISIONS

So remember I told you that yesterday I wanted to get some sewing done, and you're probably waiting to see some wonderful result, well, I have none.

Yeah, I sat down with the fabrics and the directions and projects and got stuck trying to figure out which one to make first....about 30 minutes later I'm still sitting there staring at everything....so I got nothing done.

I'm frustrated with myself, I really need to get these started but you know, I also need to realize that trying to get things done on the weekend when everyone is home, is NOT a good idea.

Hubby is working midshift which means he is like a baby on a switched schedule, you know when you bring them home and they sleep all day and then stay awake all night??? Just like that, which is frustrating for me, especially trying to keep the kids quiet. What's up with kids and ear piercing shrieks, and just when did they turn into Bainshees???

So as you can see, I got nothing done, other than laundry, which I still have another two loads to get through and then a couple baskets to put away. MY.FAVORITE.PART....not really, actually I think that is the ONE process of laundry that I most hate, but what can you do???

I've signed up with the Laundry Fairies but they seem to be resisting. Something about "too much to put away" and "not enough fun involved"....who knows???

Just had to share that cartoon, it cracks me up LOL

I want to ask you all to please say a prayer for my MIL, she's having a bit of a hard time with the treatments and she's also dealing with being anemic etc....she has surgery coming up in December so please keep her in your prayers. I would really appreciate that :)

We just found out too that hubby might be leaving for Afghanistan the beginning of the year and that will be a minimum of 6 months, so keep him in your prayers too please.
It's just another part of the whole military family thing, and it's hard but it's worth it :)

I don't know what I'm going to be doing today, other than keeping children quiet as a mouse and getting some cleaning done too. I'm hoping for some TV time, I miss just laying on the couch and flipping through the channels, watching whatever comes up. Maybe I'll get lucky and the kids will take a nap??? Nah, I didn't think so!!!

Oh before I forget, I was thinking about my favorite South African dishes and what I miss about home, and I posted recipes for Koeksusters and Melktert, you have GOT to try both, they are delicious...especially if you have a sweet tooth.

I'm sorry I don't have anything interesting to share with you all today, I'm having a blah day, I've had this bad sinus/tension headache since yesterday and it's really bugging me. It interferes with my train of thought, actually, it doesn't take much to do that, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I better go make some lunch for these hungry kids, I'm making some Tuna Salad but with Black eyed peas, olive oil and vinegar, it's really really good. Try it some time :)

Have a wonderful sunday,


For dinner I'm making Fake Steak with Rice, will post the recipe for you later.



7th Heaven

Lucy has her hands full dealing with the teens and Sandy while Eric and Annie are away, but the most trouble comes from Ruthie (Mackenzie Rosman), who selfishly refuses to leave Scotland to be with the family.

Desperate Housewives

Bree meets Orson's mother (Dixie Carter), and the women don't exactly hit it off. Meanwhile, Gaby decides to get back into modeling, and Lynette is suspicious of her new neighbor. Karl Mayer: Richard Burgi.

Brothers and Sisters

Justin's vow of sobriety is severely tested by the unsettling contents of a letter.

Celebrity Paranormal Project

A mental asylum is explored by Traci Lords, Gilbert Gottfried, NFL player Jeremiah Trotter, Evan Farmer ("While You Were Out") and Kimberly Caldwell ("American Idol").

Laundry
Ironing
Cleaning