Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Smile

This is the day that the Lord has made,
let us rejoice and be glad in it!
Ps 118:24

Last week was an emotional week for me.
My wonderful sister surprised me with this
sweet "Happy Face" flower.
I set it on my kitchen counter next to the sink
and each time I saw it, I smiled!
I am linking to Simple Pleasures over at
A special thankyou to our wonderful hostess Dayle!

Monday, September 27, 2010

A Weekend Treat

What does a
 Cold Stone Icecream Cake
and
"Real" popcorn
have in common?
In my case it means..
"someone" just turned a year older!
It also means that this certain "someone"
has had a wonderful weekend of celebration!
Starting on Friday night with
Girls Night In!
Abby, who lives locally
and
Dana, who lives out of town
came and spent Friday night with me!

Abby brought this excellent yummy cake,
Dana popped the real corn,
(in my house if I pop the corn it
only involves a bag and microwave)
 and we spent the evening
talking, laughing and eating!

Saturday was filled to the brim
with a morning prayer retreat,
Starbucks,
thrifting until Abby had to depart for home.
Dana and I then went out for Thai
(Abby and I went out for Thai on Friday)
then to a movie!
All this celebrating and my birthday
wasn't till Sunday!
Sunday was also a fun filled day!
Church,
a small craft fair,
lunch at a newly found coffee shop and cafe,
followed up by a family birthday party celebration
at Mom and Dad's house!
I share a birthday with my beautiful niece Jamie
and my nephew Kee's birthday is the day after!
( I love this, I never forget these birthdays!)

I hope each of you have a great week!
I still have two more celebrations to go!
Dinner with my sweet neighbor ladies on Tuesday
and lunch with dear church friends on Friday!

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Me want cookies....

I am so excited to be joining Wendy's cookie party
I highly encourage you to head on over
and check out her party!
If you feel inspired, create your own cookie post
and join in the fun!

Now, my favorite cookie is the basic chocolate chip.
Throw some oatmeal into the mix
and that's yummy too!
Today's cookie is all about the "no-bake".


You will need:
2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup of butter
3 tablespoons baking cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups of quick oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix the first 5 ingredients together
over high heat.
Bring to boil.
Boil for 1 minute!
( I'm sure that this boiling process is important,
but I'm not sure why?
My guess is that it has something to do with science!)

While I was mixing and boiling,
Madison (my daughter) helped by:
Measuring peanut butter
and
oatmeal!

After boiling for 1 minute:
add the quick oats
the peanut butter
and vanilla
Mix!
Using a scoop or a spoon,
Drop mixture onto wax paper!
Allow time to set!

Eat and enjoy!


Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Simple Pleasures

I am linking to Simple Pleasures
A special thank you to Dayle our hostess!

My simple pleasure this week is breakfast with Nona.

Nona is my paternal Grandma. 
Within the past two years she has suffered two major strokes.
Each one robbing her of daily functions we often take for granted.
She now requires 24 hour care, much like a infant would require.
My mom and dad made the loving decision to care
for her fulltime in their home.
Three days a week, I have the honor of assisting in her care
while my children are in school.
My parents live "out in the country" and are
blessed with an amazing view over looking a small valley.
Each morning Nona and I watch out the window
at the view and birds at mom's feeders.
We never know what type of birds we will observe.
During the summer we see hummingbirds and
bright yellow finches.
During the winter, we get Blue Jays and Cardinals!
I treasure my Nona!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Summer 2010

I just wanted to wish each of you a
Happy Last Day of Summer!

Sunday, September 19, 2010

She wore an...

Itsy, bitsy...
Teeny, weeny...
Pok-a-dotted bikini!
Guess who is in heat!
Poor Latte,
 came with fleas, worms
and now this?
Good thing she has proven herself to be a keeper!
Guess who will be spade next month?


I wishing each one a you a Happy Monday!

Sunday, September 12, 2010

A Sneek Peek!

I am posting to Metamorphosis Monday
A special thank you to our host Susan!

We made the decision in August
to change our counter tops
from Formica to granite.
{The Before}
This gave us the perfect opportunity to rectify
a "poor" design choice we had made
when we built 6 years ago.
The high counter bar that separated our kitchen from
the dining room has always been slightly, too high!
{Before}
Our new plan...
lower it to counter height.
To do this we had to deconstruct part of the wall.
Wayne and I removed the counter and corbels.
Once we removed the old counter top,
we cut down the studs and drywall in order
to create a level surface for the new counter.
Wayne then worked at patching the drywall!
All we needed was the new counter top!
And here they are...
{After}
We just love the way they turned out!
Being opened to the morning room makes
the kitchen feel so much bigger and brighter!
We still have to pick out and install a back splash.
Any thoughts?

On another note...
our new puppy has a name!
Latte!

Sunday, September 5, 2010

What's in a name...?

Well,
 we did it....
our resolve,
dissolved.

In spite of not only seeing the benefits to one pup
as well as having a much cleaner, hair free home...
allow me to introduce you to...
our new Mastiff puppy!
No, I'm not kidding when I say puppy!
She is only 10 months old,
and if we have to guess...
only 115 pounds give or take a few.
Which means, since Mastiffs grow until they are
around 18 months old... she is bound to
only get bigger!
We found her via Petfinders.
She was an owner release,
(too big, can't go to an apartment)
and we drove about 2 1/2 hours north to
Wooster, Ohio to pick her up yesterday!
Caribou, our other dog,
 was so excited to come on the trip too!
At least until,
 we put her in the car to come home with us!
A new family portrait!
See her "puppy" paws....!
Zac, who has large paws himself,
helps to demonstrate just how big those paws are!
We can't wait to see what she will look like when
she grows into her paws and head!

Thankfully she comes potty trained and
has been taught some basic commands!
However,
 she came with a name we are looking to change.
That name...Mercedes.
Although we can joke and now say we own a Mercedes,
the poor little thing needs a new name...
We've tossed around
Jersey,
Lynx,
Wooster,
Puma
and Latte.
I've told the family that if we
don't decide on something soon
I will continue to call her Baby Girl!
All this indecision has just
Worn us out!